Dragonfly’s Fire
by Blue Persuasion
Summary: CH1 edited AU.Mirage has lost her memories and finds herself in a place she's sure isn't home. What she doesn't know can and will hurt her unless she finds the answers to her missing memories. Will Cliff be able to help before the truth kills her?
1. Awareness of Tenue

**Disclaimer:** Me? Who me? Nope, not me!

Yes, here's another Clirage! Only this one is an AU. I'm using all the same characters and places in the game, only with a twist. You'll see. There's a lot here that will be what you are used to and a lot that will be different.

Right now, other couples are undecided. This will focus mainly on Mirage. Yes, I'm a rabid Mirage fan…ask CAT!

When it comes to communication either over the intercom or through any other digital means dashes will be used to emphasize that. (Ex: -hello-)

I'M RE-WRITING THIS! Chapter by chapter I'll be attempting to improve, clarify and simply edit things to flow a bit better. I usually don't have anyone proofread, not because no one will but because I like to see how far I'll get on my own. I'm stubborn… So, edited chapters will include the dates below, unedited chapters will not – I didn't want to take the whole thing down but I can only do bit by bit. I'll be editing when I have no inspiration to write new stuff.

Warning, editing means longer chapters!

Original version: 2/4/06

Update started: 4/6/07

Update completed: 4/8/07

**Introduction**

Fear.

That was the essence that sustained her.

At first, she couldn't move as a new phobia nested in her gut. She heard her heart beat heavily. Each eardrum resonated with the sound of every thump of blood as it pumped rapidly through her veins. Immobility engulfed her. Though she felt no restraints she was unable to lift even a finger.

Eyes were closed. Her head felt on the verge of an implosion. Nausea kept its hold on her throat and her head spun with the simple task of opening her eyes. Slowly, using a force of pure will, each eye was pried open one at a time.

A light, bright and unfriendly, greeted her vision. The contents of her stomach stirred. Instinct alone allowed her to keep herself from regurgitation. The edges of her vision cleared to reveal a fluorescent light. The radiance stung her eyes, but moving her sight proved to be a task in itself. Painfully slow, her eyes diverted from the light and to the clean white ceiling overhead.

As she turned her head slightly pain struck like lightning through her neck. Unwillingly a moan escaped her lips. The vibrations in her throat left her mouth course and dry.

"Whoa there," a voice rang from her side. The voice of the man, though he spoke only above a whisper, penetrated her ears with such force she almost passed out. A warm hand accompanied the disembodied voice and came to rest on her cheek.

"Don't try to move so fast. You need to take it slow and easy."

"_Easy for him to say,"_ she thought. _"He isn't the one who aches in every possible place to ache. He's not lying flat on his back with no clue as to what is going on!"_

She tried to open her mouth but failed. Her tongue stuck to the top of her mouth like cotton and her throat was too sore for words. She grunted softly only to cause her throat to burn.

"Just hold still a bit." The hand moved to her eyes. Each lid was pulled up, wide open, and a light directed into them one at a time. It was annoying, not to mention it added one more notch on the headache scale she currently had going. She knew instantly at that time she did not like this man. Not at all.

"How are her stats?" His voice carried over her again.

"_My stats? Am I in a hospital? I guess that would explain the nice bright light above me."_

Though she could curse the man through mental thoughts, she was helpless to take any action. That was the root of her fear. She was helpless and still had no idea as to what was going on.

"Everything appears normal. She should be right as rain after one more injection," a new voice replied. The new voice was feminine in nature and it only heightened her fear.

It seemed that everything scared her at the time. She couldn't recall a single day of her life. It was clear to her she was in a hospital of sorts and they were going to inject her. Not only that, but by the sound of it, it wouldn't be the first injection they gave her. She might be suffering from memory loss, but she did know she hated needles. It would seem that some things, despite the circumstances, never change.

"Good," the man replied. Both figures were out of her sight. She couldn't see anyone or anything but that spot on the ceiling. She aimed her animosity toward that spot. She needed something to blame and that spot was in the wrong place at the wrong time.

"Get it ready. Now Miss, don't worry. You'll be going to sleep soon and when you wake up you'll find it easier to move. The pain will be gone, trust me."

"_Trust him? Who's he kidding?"_ His voice might have been warm and soothing, but there was something buried deep in it that caused all her internal alarms to ring. Something wasn't right here and she was stuck in the middle of it.

She felt a pinch in her neck. It stung, but compared to the pain she felt everywhere it was easily ignored. After just seconds she felt herself drifting toward sleep. She wasn't sure she wanted to sleep but she couldn't stop herself. She took a little solace in knowing that the pain would subside while she slept. It was very little comfort, but it was something.

"_I just wish I knew what the hell was going on."_

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Dragonfly's Fire

Chapter One

Awareness of Tenue

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When she woke she was flat on her back (again). Her eyes opened instantly upon command with no side effects of illness. The nausea she had felt was gone, taking with it the soreness in her throat and the awful headache. It was a small thing; but she was thankful, none the less.

She sat up and surveyed her environment. She was surrounded by trees. There was no artificial light, only the sun hanging over head. As she stood, she squinted to peer beyond the green foliage. Trees. That was all there was to see. A bounty of fresh, thriving trees.

"_If I wasn't confused before, which I was, I am now."_

Testing each leg, she stood. Recalling all the aches she had experienced with clarity, she instinctively placed a hand on her neck. The place in which the injection had been given was no sorer than the rest. She was pain free and fine.

"What is going on here?" she asked out loud. Of course, no one answered. She hadn't expected a response since she had already determined she was alone. She studied the area again. She couldn't just stand there all day. She needed to get moving. She needed answers to all the questions she had.

Where was she? What had happened? Where were the people who were in the room earlier? What had they done to her? Who was she?

"Who am I?" she asked. She thought hard on that question. Who she was, she couldn't remember. She couldn't remember anything. Who she was… where she was from. Nothing. Her mind was a blank.

She looked to the ground in a futile attempt to recall even the smallest of things. She pried at any ghost of a memory which would linger. Unfortunately, nothing was to be found. She couldn't remember anything. Her mind was a clean canvas.

Keeping her attention on the ground below, she turned to see if she had dropped anything. The ground was empty of anything but fresh footprints. This left the only alternative of checking herself.

She wore a shirt with sleeves reaching the top of each elbow. It was navy blue in color, not a very becoming color either. Over that she wore a black vest. To accompany the somber ensemble, she donned black shorts reaching knee level. On each arm she wore gloves, ending high above each elbow and each finger was exposed from the black cloth. High cut boots finished her wardrobe. Unsurprisingly, they were also black.

She was beginning to question if she wanted to know who she was. Going on the only clue she had, she determined she had no taste for clothing. A little color would have been nice. Something to make her feel like she could have possible been a fun person. Well, maybe not too much color. Being seen as a clown would have disturbed her even more.

The pockets of her shorts provided no help. However, in the inside pocket of the vest she found some fol and a card. She replaced the money and studied the hard plastic. The card sported a picture of a woman, in her late twenties with blonde hair and warm blue eyes.

"Is this me," she mumbled under her breath as a finger ran over the photo. There was no way for her to be sure until a mirror could be found.

Under the picture was a single word. In bold letters the word **Mirage** was printed neatly. Flipping it to inspect the back did nothing but provide a bar code.

"Mirage," she said at normal volume, letting the word roll off her tongue. It didn't spark one ounce of recognition. It didn't sound much like a name either. Still, it was the only clue she had. If asked a name that would be what she would provide. She only hoped that if she met anyone they didn't ask a last name. Or any other details for that matter.

Tenderly, as if holding on to the only thread to reality she had left, she placed the card back into the pocket. Patting the spot on the vest close to her heart where the items were tucked, she chose a direction at random. Anything was better than standing still. The sun was high but would soon enough set and she wanted to find anything she could before nightfall.

Her mind continuously wandered back to the room as she walked. Cold and lifeless, that room was her earliest memory. There had been two people there that she knew of. Perhaps there had been more, but she had seen no one and only heard the man and woman.

After hours of turning these thoughts every direction she could; a subtle fear once again seated itself in the pit of her stomach. Something was not right. Something had been done to her. There was no idea of what, but she knew that her memory loss was connected to the 'doctors' somehow.

By the time she drug her unwilling mind from the (what she hoped was) recent past, she noticed the terrain had changed. The land started to slope upward and the ground was littered with pebbles. The pebbles grew and became rocks. Rocks become boulders. And one such boulder blocked her path.

Upon inspection she was dismayed to find no way around it. To the left was a sudden drop and to the right was another slope too slick to walk up. Before her brain could convey her own actions, she was climbing the boulder with such ease she dared not stop. Instinct pushed her up and over the rocky lump.

Jumping down on the other side, she glanced once over her shoulder. The mound she had just climbed reached a few feet over her head and did not appear to be climbable upon first inspection. All she could do was conclude that she was use to such obstacles and though her memories were not in tack, her instincts would use what skills she already had.

This led to another discovery. She was in top shape. Though the appearance of muscle bound Amazon would not fit, she could clearly decipher muscle tone in her legs and arms. The climb had taken an effortless amount of energy, which meant she was accustomed to a workout. Her esteem boosted slightly.

So far all she knew was that her name might be Mirage…however, that was an odd name. Perhaps it was a company she worked for. But what kind of company would hire employees with as much dexterity and agility? Her walk and climb had hardly tired her at all.

Beyond the boulder was an open path laced with nothing but dirt. She had traveled from a flush rich environment to one that was desolate and barren. She strolled along the path, passing rocks twice her size. Nothing about it was familiar at all. It was uncomforting.

And, as she quickly learned, deadly.

She heard a noise but quickly dismissed it as the wind. There was a subtle breeze in the cool air. When the second noise issued to her left, just out her scope of vision, she knew something wasn't right.

There was someone out there. Someone who didn't want her to see them. She wasn't alone.

Then she encountered yet another discovery – she could fight. She wasn't sure why, but the area was littered with creatures ready to kill her. First it was a small group of rat type creatures. Next came things she couldn't describe as anything less then porcupines. When she had found herself confronted, her instincts had kicked in.

The outcome had resulted in the prompt removal of a threat she had walked away from scratch free. She tried to shrug it off. It would seem that the day had been filled with surprises. One thing for sure, she wanted to find somewhere to stay for the night. The horizon betrayed that night was not far off and she knew enough about herself to know she would require sleep.

As she approached the end of the path she felt a small nostalgia. She wondered if she was somewhere she had been before.

She cursed her confusion and inability to remember. All she wanted was to know who she was and what was going on. Why did she wake one time surrounded by people only to wake the second time in the middle of nowhere and alone?

Something didn't fit and something wasn't right. Fear gripped her again. Maybe something was behind this. She wasn't even sure what had caused her amnesia. Or who, if there was someone behind it. The more thought she put into it the more determine she was to avoid anyone until she was able to remember something.

She entered a town and tried her best not to draw any attention to herself. She felt awkward and couldn't help but to let her eyes dart around suspiciously. The population on the streets was scarce, and no one gave her a second look. She almost screamed at herself. As much as she didn't want to be noticed, she couldn't help but to be irritated at the fact that no one recognized her.

Then another realization came to her. As she searched for somewhere to stay the night, she felt out of place. She might not remember who she was, or much of anything else; but she found herself in a place that didn't fit. Somehow it seemed too old fashioned to be home.

Her head started to throb. What ever was going on, her apprehension only grew with each new discovery. Something was out of place and she had no idea where to start to find answers.

After a while of searching through the town she finally found somewhere to lodge. Perhaps a good night's sleep would help her. She only hoped that the night didn't provide any more unexpected surprises.

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Cliff stared at the console; scrutinizing every detail. His fuse was unusually short. The sparse crew avoided him unless duty provided necessary. He had been in a foul mood ever since his meeting with headquarters. Everyone eagerly dreaded what news he may have to share with them. None of them had ever seen the man so ticked off.

Cliff ejected the disc and held it up. "Yo Fayt," he called looking at the engineer. When Fayt twisted his chair to face his captain, Cliff tossed the disc at him. Fortunately for him he caught it. "Run a scan on that will ya. Let me know if anything is out of place. And I mean if even one digit is wrong I want to know."

"Sure thing, boss," Fayt replied, inserting the disc into his own terminal.

Cliff grunted at the boy but held his tongue. It was a running joke between them and he wasn't going to allow his bad mood to interfere with one of the small details that kept his job somewhat enjoyable. Since the first day the rookie had joined his squad, he had called him boss. Cliff didn't really appreciate it but for some reason he could handle it coming from him. He figured it was only due to the resemblance Fayt had in comparison to his younger brother.

Cliff shook the memories from his head. There was no time to dwell on the past. Right now he had a job to do and he always took pride in his job. As much as he hated it at times he still felt good with a 'mission accomplished'.

"Marietta," Cliff said directing his attention to his navigator. "I'm sending a destination to you. I want us there ASAP."

"Will do, Captain."

Cliff stood and gathered the papers scattered around his terminal. Despite the fact that files could easily be transferred to disc, he preferred the 'traditional' way of file keeping. Once this mission was over, he would dispose of any hard copies. But until then, he did things his way. He stuffed the papers neatly into the folder and left the bridge.

His spacecraft wasn't large, but it still had way too many halls; in Cliff's opinion. He walked the shortest distance to the control room. The doors answered his unspoken command and opened. Inside he found just the person he needed.

"Yo Tray," Cliff said as upbeat as he could.

She looked up from her work with a questioning expression. "Don't tell me, another one?"

He chuckled, trying to make light of the subject. "How'd ya know?"

Her lips pressed hard together. "You only call me Tray when something's wrong."

He tossed the folder down beside the keypad she was working on. "Fine, you got me." He tapped the folder. "I need to know everything I can about the subject and the terrain. Think you can handle it, _Maria_?"

She opened the folder and studied the contents. "Hum, so this is the newest subject?" She removed the photo from the papers. "It would look like Belzeber has decided to choose a more formidable guinea pig this time."

Cliff gave her a chastising smile. "You are so cold sometimes."

"Hey, do you want someone who's all buddy buddy or do you want someone who can get the job done?"

He gave her a stern look. "It wouldn't hurt you to break that shell just a bit, you know. Yeah, your background might lead everyone else here to believe you are nothing more then a selfish anti-social kick butt crow; but you don't have us all fooled."

"Yeah, yeah," Maria responded shooing him with her hand. "Don't think you can hold that over my head for too much longer. Once my time here is done then I'm out."

He plucked the picture from her fingers and rested it on top of the opened folder. "Well, until that time just remember who you're working for. Anyway, I need any information you can get on her just as soon as possible."

She cocked her head to the side and gave him a suspicious look. "There's something different about this one huh? What is it that makes you so edgy about this case?"

Cliff glanced at the photo. He knew this wasn't the first time they had handled a situation like this. He also knew that his demeanor was giving something away. He never liked to share his personal life. That was something he would sooner forget. He turned and headed for the door.

The door opened and he took one step into the hall before answering her question. "She reminds me of someone I used to know." With that the door closed. The conversation was over.

Cliff made his way straight for his private quarters. He needed some rest and now was as good a time as any. He went through the mundane routine of removing only his top and shoes. Though the ship's clocks indicated it was only noon, in space it didn't feel like night or day.

He remained silent as he got in the small bed; resting his arm behind his head. "There's no way it's you. Pretty good look-a-like. But still not you. You've always walked the straight and narrow. They wouldn't be interested in your type."

Cliff drifted to sleep. His mind was uneasy and he tossed a bit. His 'good night' speech had done nothing to calm his suspicions.

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She stirred from her sleep as the sun's rays brushed her eyelids. Fluttering to the land of the wake, she remained as she was for a brief minute. The night had provided nothing more than relief from fatigue. She had no idea she had been so tired until she had gotten into bed. Within no time she had fallen to sleep. Her night passed dream free.

Mirage sat up and scratched her head. A nightmare would have been preferred to no dreams. Any thing that would aid her in recovering her memories would be welcomed. She didn't think she had been a medical specialist, but she thought she recalled that memory loss wasn't something that would come back overnight.

She got up and stretched. In response to her movements her stomach rumbled. She realized that she had yet to eat anything since she woke in the woods. Smacking her lips, she decided to hold off on food consumption until she had more of an idea of her surroundings.

She glanced around the room, noticing it for the first time. It was simple with only a bed and a dresser. Over the dress was a mirror. Resting under the mirror was a bowl, a white cloth and a comb.

The first thing she did was look in the mirror. Sure enough she was the one from the picture in her pocket. Only unlike her picture her hair was unkempt and her face was pledged with dirt. She ran her fingers over her cheeks. What she wanted to do now was take a nice long shower.

The room she was in was nothing more than a room. There was no bath attached. Her only option was to use the items left and do the best she could. Once the white cloth was damp she washed her face. The dirt was stubborn, but her efforts paid off.

Once she was satisfied with her face she pulled her hair down from the tattered braid and attempted to bush it with the comb. The task was frustrating as her hair proved too thick. She sat on the bed and did the best she could with the only thing she had to make herself look decent. After separating her hair many times she was able to bush it somewhat.

She observed her work in the mirror. Without thinking she set to replacing the braid. She didn't feel clean or presentable but it would have to do until she found a place to shower, was able to buy a brush and hopefully a change of cloths.

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-You understand right? This time we need her back alive.- The detached voice of Wittcomb leaked from the speakers on Cliff desk.

"It's not like we wanted to bring the last two back in a body bag, you know. It's just that the treatment makes them crazy or something. Trust me; we won't kill anyone we don't have to." Cliff leaned back in his chair. It was times like this he was reminded why he hated his job.

-Good. I'll be waiting for an update at the earliest possible time. Until then try to lighten up a bit. You have changed and I'm not sure I like it much.-

Cliff chuckled. "Well, what do you want? You want me to treat my job like I treated my education back in college?"

Cliff could hear the scowl on Wittcomb's face through the speaker. -You know what I mean. It's been a while since we had the chance to just go out and talk about old times. After this mission we should. I think it might do you some good.-

"Yeah, are you sure Annie would approve? She never liked me from the moment we meet."

-Annie never hated you. She just thought you were a bad influence on me. You sure did a total one-eighty, Fitter. You always got in trouble in college but now you're the one we send after the trouble makers.-

"It's like they say: Takes one to know one. I find it somewhat fulfilling to nab guys that deserve to do time. I might have been a trouble maker, but these guys are just bad."

-Fair enough. Don't keep me waiting too long to hear back from you.-

"You got it, Commander."

-One last thing, Fitter. Don't make this a personal vendetta.-

Before Cliff could respond, Wittcomb had ended the transmission.

"_Personal vendetta? That can only imply…"_

His thoughts were interrupted by a knock on the door. "Enter."

Maria entered his office and sat in the chair across from him. "Got the info you requested." She passed the folder over the desk. "Anything else you need?"

"Yeah, now you can go and check the weapons inventory. Calibrate what needs calibration and try to select weapons that are suitable for the environment. We need to keep a low profile."

Maria stood and nodded. "Gotcha."

Cliff watched the blue haired teen as she walked away. "Oh, have you already sent the proper papers to communications?"

"Yeah, Sophia's working on that now. She said she would be ready to debrief us shortly."

Cliff waited until the door shut behind her to open the file. He was both hesitant and eager to learn what he could about the new subject. As for the terrain, he would wait for Sophia to fill them all in on her analysis.

He pulled the personal report out and scanned over it.

**NAME: **Mirage Koas

**AGE: **27

**RACE:** Klausian

**GENDER: **Female

**PLACE OF BIRTH: **Dustin Valley, Klaus III

**OCCUPATION:** Current instructor of the Koas dojo in Dustin Valley.

**EDUCATION: **Associates degree in advanced compounding. Bachelor's degree in engineering.

**SKILLS/ABILITIES: **Top female fighter on Klaus III in the area of hands on hands sparing. She shows leadership and mentoring skills through her job, though tends to avoid too much social interaction when outside the dojo.

**NOTES:** Mirage Koas was reported missing two weeks ago by the manager of the apartment complex she lives in. Shortly afterward her father also reported her missing when she did not visit him at the rest home. Her current whereabouts are unknown.

"Not anymore," Cliff mumbled to the incoherent paper. He put the paper back in the folder and set it on his desk. He left his office and headed for the bridge. _"So, it is you. What are you doing mixed up in this mess, Mirage? I was the trouble maker and you were the sensible one. When I find that Belzeber then there will be hell to pay."_

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Blue's Afterthoughts:

Chapter one is edited. I'm sure there are some added errors since I added more text, but I hope it was better and less rushed. New ideas seem to rush from my brain and in a futile attempt get them down they seem to race through.

This goes with the challenge for an amnesic Clirage fic - sorta (See the SO Forum Fun! forum by those Crazy Authoresses). After 'Inside My Heart' I just fell in love with writing this couple.

When I get in the mood to write mystery/suspense then I work on this one. And I think that this writing style is my favorite to write. I love to attempt humor and my angst fic is the first one of those I've done so I have to stick with it to see if I can really pull it off – it's fun for me to challenge myself. But with this writing style it's almost like I don't have to try as hard (though I still have to work at it).


	2. Chapter 2

**Disclaimer:** It's not what you think…I SWEAR!

When it comes to communication either over the intercom or through any other digital means dashes will be used to emphasize that. (Ex: -hello-)

* * *

Nel tightened her scarf to prevent the cold chill from hitting her neck as she entered Kirlsa. It was noon and the town had woken to its usual business. 

"_All I have to do is find her, kill her and go home."_

Nel twitched slightly. She didn't want to kill anyone. Not with the threats of war on the horizon. But she had no choice. When it came down to it, her hands were tied.

As she walked the streets, Nel scanned the crowds for anyone fitting the description of her target. She had been assured that the woman was here somewhere. All she had to do was find her. But Kirlsa was large. The odds were against her.

Nel was becoming frustrated. She didn't like being out of her country and on a mission that was not directed by her queen. But she would do what it took to ensure the safety of her queen at all cost. If that included killing a stranger, then so be it.

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Dragonfly's Fire

Chapter Two

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"That was interesting," Mirage replied leaving the public bath house. She had wanted a shower but had settled for a bath. She decided she needed to learn more about her surroundings before engaging in too much conversation with the locals. No one had heard of a shower.

At least she had been able to clean herself and freshen up. She felt better. As for her clothing, this place seemed intent on having women in dresses. Her memory wasn't what it should be but she knew immediately that she did not want to be stuck in a dress. To compromise she washed the cloths she had and purchased an overcoat that would hide the fact she wasn't in a dress.

With that settled, she opted to walk the town for a while and see if anything would strike her as familiar. The wind held a chill and the sky was overcastted with dreary gray clouds. As she walked, she noticed only a small hint that this place was somewhere she had been before. But it was so small that she couldn't argue that this place might only resemble somewhere she had actually been.

She passed a restaurant and decided that her search could wait until her belly was full. The first thing she noticed upon entering was the abundance of occupants. She searched the tables with no luck at finding a seat. Her gaze drifted until she found an open seat at the bar. Well, her stomach didn't care where she sat as long as she was able to eat.

Shortly after she sat she was confronted by a waitress. "Does the lady wish to dine on the dish of the day," she asked with a smile.

Mirage smiled back at her. "That's fine."

When the meal was placed before her she paid and started to eat. She had to pace herself. She restrained from ravishing the food down. It felt like weeks since she had last had anything to eat.

"Is it that good?"

Mirage froze and looked to the source of the voice. The chair to her right that had been previously unoccupied held another female. The first thing Mirage noticed was the woman's brilliant red hair.

"And what would the lady like this day?" the waitress interrupted before Mirage could respond.

"The same as her," the woman replied.

Mirage watched the waitress leave before looking back at her lunch companion. "Hello."

The woman looked like she was sizing her up. Mirage couldn't help but to feel uncomfortable under her stare. "Who are you?"

Mirage hesitated. So far she hadn't been asked anything so bluntly. The residents were content keeping to themselves. There was something different about this woman. Something that send a chill down Mirage's spine.

"Mirage." She answered simply.

The woman grunted. "Mirage? Is that it? What house do you hail from?"

"I'm sorry. I don't understand the question." Mirage rested the wooden spoon in her bowl of half eaten soup.

"Do you not have a last name?" The woman paused long enough to receive her meal and pay for it. "Are you a drifter?"

Mirage wasn't sure what to make of the whole conversation. At the same time she was mad at herself for not remembering her last name. Despite her anger, she knew something wasn't right. Something about this woman caused her guard to go up.

"I'm sorry but I'm unsure of what a drifter is."

The woman scrutinized her some more. "A drifter is just that; a drifter. They have no home but they usually travel in groups."

Mirage immediately saw her opportunity to attempt escape from further questioning. "Then yes, I'm a drifter but I was separated from my group. Can I ask who you are?"

The woman took a bite from her soup before returning her hard stare back to Mirage. "Nel."

"Nel?"

"I have a last name, but you have no need to know it."

Mirage's gut twisted and she no longer had an appetite. Right now her dominating instinct was to run. Something about this woman didn't set well with her. Something was wrong and she was sure she didn't want to find out what.

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-Captain! We have a situation here in the stock room.-

Cliff sighed as he looked up at the ceiling. Nothing on his ship ever seemed to go right. Protocol was nothing more then a fantasy. "I'll be right there Schilling," Cliff responded from his position on the bridge.

"Maybe I should come along," Fayt said laughing as he stood from his station. "For all you know it might be another of Schillings infamous practical jokes."

"True," Cliff responded shaking his head. "The guy's really had it out for me since I was promoted and he wasn't. Only ill fate would have it for him to be stationed under me."

Cliff led the way to the internal transporter. Within no time the two were transported to the lower deck. Cliff couldn't help but to wonder if a transporter was truly necessary. The ship only had three levels. The lower level consisted of the storage room, the engine room, the transporter room, and the weapons room. The middle level consisted of the bridge, the captain's chambers, the control room, the communications room/lab and the conference room. The upper level consisted of personal quarters, the infirmary and the hatches leading to the escape pods.

Compared to many of the other ships working for the Federation, his ship was tiny. Of course it had to be small so not to attract too much attention to the diversion of Federation funds. The assignments he was sent on weren't exactly up to date on Federation law.

Did he feel like a hypocrite? Of course he did, but there was no way to do what he did with open support. Not that it mattered since all his funds came from the very head of the Federation.

He had always fought the system. He never would have guessed that one day he would work for the system with orders that directly violated their own laws. Well, it happens.

When the two entered the stock room it took extra restraint not to laugh at the man who had called for help. Schilling danced around the room frantically trying to remove something from his back. That something just happened to be a young girl.

Cliff sighed as he pushed his hair away from his forehead. Taking one step he reached out and grabbed the girl by her shirt and pulled her off his crew member. She landed on her rump. "Ouch!"

Once his burden was removed, Schilling turned and was ready to extract his revenge. Cliff stopped him with a quick motion and looked down at the girl.

"And what are you doing here?"

Her green eyes started to water as she shook her head; causing her silver pig tails to slap her face gently.

Cliff knelt down. "Come on. Answer me. What are you doing here?"

"I didn't mean any harm," she blurted. Tears rolled down her cheeks. "It's just you all left without even saying goodbye."

He reached out and took her shoulder. "Well, looks like we're stuck with you for a bit. It'll be a while before we can make it back to Moon Base."

The girl immediately perked up. "I'll be fine, you'll see. I'll help anyway I can!"

Cliff stood and turned to Fayt. "Look kid, hate to ask but I'll need you to keep an eye on her for a bit."

Fayt betrayed his worried look. "Don't you think we should drop her off somewhere on the way. This isn't exactly the kind of work that you can ensure the safety of children."

Cliff patted his shoulder. "That's what I tried to tell them before they sent you here."

"Ha-ha, very funny."

"I'm serious. You, Sophia and Maria shouldn't be here. This line of work requires experience. You three haven't even lived half your lives yet."

-Captain Fitter, I'm ready for the debriefing-

"We're on our way Sophia. Just hang tight."

Cliff looked down at the girl who had already attached herself to Fayt. "Come on. You might as well join us. I don't think Schilling is up for babysitting duties."

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Mirage did her best not to walk too hastily from the restaurant. Her hurried steps carried her out of the building and into the streets. When she was a few yards from the restaurant's entrance, she turned.

Standing in the street in front of the building she had just left was Nel. The woman was looking at her and Mirage felt like prey. Giving up on keeping a low profile, Mirage turned and ran.

She weaved her best around the people wondering the streets. Every glance she took behind her confirmed her suspicions that she was being followed. No matter how many turns she took, Nel was fast on her heels.

Her heart was beating as much in fear as it was from running. The idea of someone she didn't know chasing her only made her more uneasy about her current predicament. She gasped, nearly colliding with a cart. Avoiding the impact only put her running down an alley and into a dead end.

Mirage stopped a short distance from the wooden crates stacked along the walls. They looked easy enough to climb; but then what? The only problem was that then she would be on someone's roof.

She turned sharply only to come face to face with a pair of violet eyes. She immediately took a step back only to have the wood corner of a crate jab her in the back. Things happened so fast that Mirage could barely keep track of it.

Nel swung her arm around. The gleam of a dagger flashed. Almost like instinct, Mirage blocked the swing. When their wrist collided, Mirage took a hold of Nel's wrist and squeezed. In response, Nel dropped the dagger. As the clank sounded from the fallen weapon, Nel brought her other arm around and caught Mirage off guard. The sharp blade caught Mirage's left arm above her elbow.

Mirage clenched her teeth to muffle her scream. She pulled Nel closer by her wrist. As she did she brought her knee up and jammed it into the woman's abdomen. Before Nel could react, Mirage pushed her forcefully away. Nel staggered back but didn't fall. With cat like reflexes the red head propelled herself off the ground. Her body swung in mid-air.

Mirage felt the pain echo through her skull from the kick she received to the face. Once again the wooden crate was all too happy to provide Mirage with a blunt landing. Pain shot down her back. She gasped sharply. She knew this was far from over. The red head wouldn't let up and Mirage was aware she was fighting for her life.

Her blue eyes darted quickly up. Nel was ready to strike again. Mirage rolled over the wood, bruising her torso in the process. Only seconds after she had moved, a dagger became lodged in the wood where her face had once been.

Mirage took advantage of her opponents missed blow and kicked the woman in the side with enough force to throw her from her dagger.

"What do you want?" Mirage yelled. Her voice clearly showing her fear.

Nel stood and stared viciously at her. "Nothing personal. I have to do what is required to secure the safety of my queen."

"Your queen? What do I have to do with your queen?"

"Nothing." Nel crouched and was ready to lung at her again when a hand darted from the shadows and caught her.

Mirage gasped. It wasn't a hand…it was a claw.

A deep chuckle filled the ally way. "Now, what are we doing so far from home?"

Nel wiggled out of the hold and diverted her attention to the shadows. "I should have expected nothing less then to find a snake lurking in the shadows."

Mirage took a step back when a man emerged from the dark. Her gaze continually shifted from his face to his arm. Most of his left arm appeared to be made of metal and ended with a very intimidating looking claw instead of a hand.

"And you are far from home. It doesn't help your country's reputation to fight on foreign soil."

"Back off, Nox. I have my reasons."

Mirage didn't know what was going on, but one thing was for sure – if he decided to help Nel then the outcome would not be in her favor. Mirage took her chance and darted back toward the streets. She ran tiring to ignore the pain she felt from her encounter with the red head.

Mirage heard the man laughing behind her. "Run! Yeah, run fast girly. I've got unfinished business with Flame here."

Mirage continued to run until the edge of the town came into view. She paused to catch her breath and scanned the streets behind her. There was no sign she was followed this time. Still, it would be suicide to stay in one place for too long.

She looked back to the open path leading out of town. _"Looks like it's time for another nature hike."_

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Cliff studied the map. "So, are you sure the signal is coming from this location." His finger pressed to the paper.

"Yup. We know she's in the western regions."

"Alright. Now, I'll need to assemble a team. From what you've said Sophia, the region is home to hostel life. The citizens live a mid-evil lifestyle. Looks like I'll need at least one fighter and someone to back us up with medical."

"OH! I can fight," the girl still attached to Fayt jumped enthusiastically in her seat.

"Sorry kid, but you stay here. Lancar," Cliff said drawing the man's attention. "Why don't you see if you can't keep the kid busy while we're gone."

"Why me?"

"You've got kids at home. Besides, I need Fayt down there with me. He's the only one aboard this ship that can deactivate the beacon."

Lancar shook his head in defeat. "Come on kid."

"I have a name. It's Peppita so stop callin' me kid,"

Cliff tugged the girl from Fayt and nudged her toward the door. "Fine, Peppita go with Lancar. Now, Maria – you'll be my fighter and Sophia I'll need you as my medical."

Sophia nodded. "Sure. Just let me gab my bag and I'm ready."

Maria started for the door but was stopped when Cliff intercepted her. "Maria, you understand the technological level of this planet?"

"No, my intelligence isn't smart enough to catch the whole 17th century Earth thing," she responded sarcastically. "I'm not deaf. Of course I understand."

"Good, then you know to leave the big guns here."

"Don't worry. My pistols are easy to conceal. And before you give me the whole speech _again_ I understand not to flash them around for the whole planet to see."

Cliff sighed and let her pass. Fayt took the opportunity to return the 'friendly' slap on the back he had received earlier. "She just won't let up will she?"

"Nope."

"And where was it she transferred from again?"

"You still don't believe me do you?" Cliff crossed his arms and gave Fayt a mocked hurt look.

"You're serious aren't you? She's really spent time in the Federation holding facility?"

"Yeah and you would be wise not to forget it. Look, I'm not saying she's all bad – if that was the case then she wouldn't be here and I wouldn't trust her to watch my back. But she's been through hell and survived. It's in your best interest to stay on her good side."

"Don't worry, boss. I've seen her angry and that's the last thing I want coming after me."

"Good. Now let's go. We need to transport down to the surface and find the target."

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After a good distance was between her and the town, Mirage stopped and ducked behind the rocks that lined the field. Her head was spinning as she collided with the ground. Her attempt to sit had turned out very ungraceful. The balance she required was avoiding her, making her life a little harder.

She gently rubbed her face carefully to avoid the bruise Nel had left on her left cheek. She breathed slowly. Each breath she took reminded her of the hard impact she had endured with the crates. Her head pounded, her chest and back throbbed and her left arm burned.

She reached under her cloak and removed the small bag she had hung over her shoulder.  
Digging through the few contents she easily found berries she had purchased earlier. She smiled; stifling her laugh as she recalled the expression on the clerks face when he explained the purpose of the items he had for sale. The berries she had chosen where used to help mend wounds faster.

She popped one in her mouth. The flavor was sweet and good. After the item was consumed she pulled the ripped sleeve of her cloak up and inspected her injury from Nel's dagger. The flesh was starting to close, but she had bled more then she realized.

Blood stained the whole length of her arm, as well as her clothing. She exhaled, and tried to relax as she examined her left hand. She had no way to clean up the skin that was now the color of dried blood.

This wasn't good. She had no idea how long she had gone without food before she had the soup earlier. And even then she wasn't able to finish her meal. She was still hungry and had lost a good amount of blood. She didn't have to worry about more blood loss; but to make matters worst her head started to pound more viciously.

She leaned back on the rocks only to jerk back into a seating position. The bruises on her back would not allow her the comfort of relaxing on a hard surface. She had thought losing her memory was bad. Bad just got worst. She still couldn't remember anything and now she had people out to kill her.

She scooted further into the rocks. Finding a clearing she leaned her right shoulder against the rocky wall. Her right arm was the only thing that didn't hurt. The hard surface was little comfort but enough for her to rest.

She felt her eyelids struggle to stay open. If she had been back at the inn then she wouldn't fight sleep. Right now she was in the open and vulnerable. The loss of blood mixed with her half empty stomach; forcing weariness to seep into her. She had survived the creatures that attacked her yesterday and the woman that tried to kill her today. Her body had been pushed to the limit and she was walking a tight rope. Sleep was almost inevitable.

She stared out across the quiet ground in front of her. Every time her eyelids closed she forced them open. Sleep was a requirement that she feared. She feared what might happen if she drifted, but she was clearly aware of the fact that staying awake did her no good either. If a threat were to face her now, she would be helpless to do anything about it.

Her eyes closed for the last time before the battle was won. Her silent enemy sleep loomed over her and threatened to hold her tight.

Silence engulfed her.

_Come on Peaches. Let's get home before your mother has a fit about us playing in the rain.  
_  
"Who's there?" Mirage asked, looking around. She didn't know what was going on. She found herself standing in the middle of a playground. It had just started to rain. The deserted equipment moved lightly in the breeze.

_How long are you going to stay up in that tree? Your dad's ready to start the next lessen.  
_  
She turned sharply to investigate the voice. Her eyes searched the tall oak she now faced. Yet again, there was no one in sight.

_Mirage! I found it. I know where I'm going when I get out of high school. Huh? Don't look so down. I'll keep in touch. I promise.  
_  
Mirage whipped her head around again. Instead of the playground, she found herself in a kitchen.

_Hey, if that's what you want then go for it. Right now, my job's taking over. I don't think I'll be able to contact you for a while. Oh, how's the old man doin' Peaches?  
_  
Mirage jerked her whole body up, stifling a scream as pain ran through her. She blinked a few times to take in her surroundings. She was still tucked behind a rock and out in the middle of nowhere.

"Dang," she mumbled under her breath. "I must have fallen asleep."

She started to move but stopped when a buzz sounded from the other side of the rocks. She froze. The noise was familiar, but she was still unable to identify it. She took a breath and rose slowly to peer over the rocks.

She stopped abruptly when she heard voices.

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Blue's Afterthoughts:

Dum-dum-dum…the plot thickens. Oh, and what exactly is going on? Hum, guess you'll have to wait and see when the mystery unfolds.

Yup, another chapter. This fic is sort of consuming my free time with thoughts of things to throw in. Oh, and I guess CAT's my biggest Clirage fan! Yay. I so love this couple and all the ideas I have flowing for this fic just won't let me rest.

But I compromised. See, I've almost got the next chapter of Prelude to the Soul finished and should have it up within a day or two – now everyone can be happy!


	3. Chapter 3

**Disclaimer:** O.o ((are you looking at me?))

I refuse to give up on this story. I swear, I have so many ideas for this it's ridiculous. Remember that it's a Clirage, and there might not be any romance now, there will be… Oh yes, there will be.

* * *

Fayt shook his hair from his face as he turned in a circle to inspect his new surrounding. "I don't know why, but every time we transport I get this irrational fear of ending up in the middle of a busy city or something." 

"Nope," Cliff responded. "Leave it to Eleanor to take care of us. She hasn't let me down yet." Cliff took a step away from his three companions and studied the scenery for himself.

They had just transported to the surface of a planet named Elicoor. Cliff kicked lightly at a loose rock and watched it tumble along the dirt path. He was always happy to have some time off his ship. As much as he loved space, he liked to get out and into the open every now and then.

Eleanor had warned them that they would be transported to the mountain area on the western continent. It was the only safe place to transport to without fear of being noticed. Still, she had neglected to warn them of how cold it would be.

Sophia stepped to Cliff's side, shaking slightly. "It might be a good time to try these," she said through clenched teeth holding up her wrist.

Each member had received a replication bracelet before transport. The device was designed to replicate items from the region the wearer occupied and effectively provide a cover to hide any native suspicions. It was a new device developed in the Federation's lab. Like almost all new devices, Cliff had the joy (and often the misfortune) of testing the prototypes.

Cliff studied the bracelet before typing in the code for wardrobe modification. His uniform was replaced with a simple overcoat and matching pants. Fayt was given a similar outfit and both the females were given dresses with shawls. He restrained from laughter at the death glare he received from Maria. One thing he liked about his job was that he had been able to take advantage of the luxuries of being a Federation official; but able to chose his own uniform. Thanks to the fact his unit worked 'under cover' he had chosen the crews uniforms – modeled after casual Klausian garb.

"Alright, where to Fayt?"

Fayt looked up at Cliff briefly before holding up the Decrypter. "That way," he said pointing. "She's somewhere to the east of here."

"Sounds simple enough," Maria responded heading in the direction Fayt had indicated. She was only able to take one step before Fayt tapped her shoulder.

"Only one problem."

"What's that?" Cliff asked turning to the engineer.

"She's not the only thing we have to look out for in that direction."

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Dragonfly's Fire

Chapter Three

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Folstar Rood paused to take in the scenery. "Disgusting. Utterly putrid." He inhaled the fresh air and faked a cough.

Folstar Rood was a man who lived off of negativity. He was convinced that the whole universe was against him. Two years ago he was terminated from his dream job with the Federation. While working for the Federation, Folstar had been irresponsible and lazy. The termination from his dream job brought to life a side of Folstar that not even he was aware of. He became ruthless and hell bent on revenge. He was the last person the Federation would suspect and an easy person for Belzeber to bend. His marksmanship with a gun made him a valuable asset to Sphere.

Folstar was in charge of retrievals. This unit consisted of three others – each with their own skills.

Leiria Zeit was the brains of the unit. Though quiet and reserved; her expertise in advanced engineering and computer science made her a valuable employee to Sphere. Her job was to track the targets digitally as well as decrypt messaged sent by Belzeber. What she lacked in fighting skills she made up for with her knowledge in support symbology.

Solon Solute was the 'wildlife' specialist of the unit. He had exceptional knowledge of the beast that roamed every known world in the Federation archives. Belzeber had quickly noticed his uncanny skills and recruited him as one of Sphere's highest paid workers. Solon processed a rare talent labeled 'Beast Attack' where he was able to wield the abilities of any native beast within a mile radius. He could also summon the beast to do his biding and fight for him.

The final member of Folstar's unit was Dirna Hamilton. Dirna was well known for her aggressiveness and finesse. Her battle skills with a spear could effectively rival that of an expert swordsman. Her only flaw was that she processed terrible shooting skills – unlike the rest of Belzeber's employees.

Leiria took her post at the side of the unit's leader. She sighed as she held up the device in her hand. "She's around here somewhere. The assassin is further to the west. Orders?"

Folstar shifted; kicking dust up intentionally. "Orders are to ignore the Dragonfly for now. First we tie up the loose ends with the assassin. Once she's out of the way, we'll hunt down the Dragonfly. Let's see if Belzeber's new toy can give us a workout."

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Mirage waited until she heard the group leave. Everything in her gut screamed at her to run and hide. Something about the conversation she had just overheard didn't settle right with her. It was an instant understanding that she was in trouble and that somehow the people who had just passed would pose a problem. Out of all the things they had said in their brief exchange, one thing clung to her mind.

The Dragonfly.

The name was familiar. She paused in thought. The Dragonfly – for reasons she still could not recall she knew it was a name. But a name for what she wasn't sure. All she truly knew was it was significant.

After she was positive enough time had passed, she left the shelter of her hiding spot. The group who had just passed was headed in the direction of the town she had just left behind. She had no idea how much time had passed as she slept in the rocky grove; but somehow the sleep had done her good. She felt new life pulse through her as her feet started their new journey into unexplored territory.

Her travels had taken her a good distance before her first encounter with hostile life. When she first noticed the beast, her guard had gone up instantaneously. This beast walked upright and towered over her by a few inches. She felt no fear when it bared its teeth and snarled. She didn't fight her instincts. Oddly she welcomed the encounter.

"Time to test my skills," she mumbled. The phrase came out so naturally she shocked herself. The beast pounced before she could give it much thought.

As clean white teeth lunged for her neck – she didn't panic. She moved at the last second; greeting the beast's abdomen with her fist. She moved with the creature and twisted to catch its head from the back as it fell. With one swift motion, she found her hands on its head and its neck broken.

She gasped as she dropped the dead creature. She had killed it in less then ten seconds. She backed away from it slowly; an uneasy feeling seizing her gut at what she had just done. She had been fully aware of every action she had taken but each move required no thought. It was almost like a routine. Deep in her gut she felt she had done that many times before. It scared her to know she could kill so easily.

She finally turned her eyes away from the corpse and continued her walk. It didn't take long for a village to come into view. Mirage had to fight the urge to avoid civilization. She needed supplies. She needed a full meal. Most of all she needed to clean up _again_.

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Cliff lead the way through the town Sophia had said was called Kirlsa. Fayt walked directly behind him. Sophia walked on one side of Fayt and Maria on the other. With Fayt covered on all sides it was easy for him to use the Decrypter and locate any signals he needed.

"Status?" Cliff asked without turning.

Fayt studied the small screen. "Koas is further east and on the move. The unidentified is close – within a few yards. Strange," he paused to take a breath. "It would seem the four Reds just passed Koas after a pause in the same area."

Cliff nodded. "She must have been hiding. Where are the Reds now?"

"They're headed this way."

"Oh, that's not good."

Maria nodded at Sophia. "We'll have to be careful not to blow our cover this time. It'll be easier if the Reds don't know we're here."

"Agreed," Cliff responded. "We need to find the unidentified before they do."

The race was on and Cliff felt his adrenaline pump prematurely. 'The Reds' were their code name for anyone serving under Belzeber. Upon arrival, Fayt had discovered four Reds located on the other side of the town they were now in. It didn't take long for Cliff to ascertain that the Reds were on a mission to dispose of the assassin Belzeber had hired to kill Mirage. Cliff hoped that this time they would find the assassin (or unidentified as they called it) first.

Cliff silently cursed the whole situation. So far everything had started just like the last two times. Just like before. He tried to block out the results of Belzeber's last two guinea pigs. In the end Belzeber's experiments had resulted in the deaths of three assassins and both test subjects. Each time the victim of Belzeber's alterations had gone mad and committed suicide.

"_I won't let that happen to you, Mirage. I can't…I just can't. Even after all this time I still want to be your protector. As silly as it sounds, I want to be your hero."_

Cliff was so lost in thought that he didn't notice the red head that had just rounded the corner before it was too late to avoid a collision. He kept his balance but she didn't. She landed on the ground in front of him as Fayt (who hadn't noticed Cliff's sudden stop) walked into Cliff. Fayt almost dropped the Decrypter, but managed to clumsily catch it.

Cliff looked down at the native sitting on the ground. "Sorry about that," he said offering his hand to help her up.

She smacked his hand away. "You should watch your step," she replied harshly as she stood.

"The unidentified!" Fayt said indicating the red head. "It's her."

The woman looked around Cliff and gave Fayt an icy stare. Her hands went immediately to the hilts of the daggers that hung on her back. Her eyes narrowed. "Are you the ones he said he would send should I fail?"

Cliff took a small step back and spread his hands away from him hoping to indicate he had no hostile intentions. "Whoa there. Just take it easy. Who is 'he'?"

She laced her fingers around the hilts of her daggers and leaned forward. "Perhaps I should just kill you now. So help me Apris if any harm has come to the Holy Mother…"

Maria instinctively reached for her guns, but a quick hand gesture from Cliff halted her. Sophia took her cue and stepped around Cliff. She held her bag with both hands in front of her and bowed. "We mean no harm to you or your people."

The woman gave her the same icy stare she had given Fayt.

Sophia cleared her throat. "We are on a pilgrimage to Aquaria. The last thing we would wish is for the Holy Mother – queen of Aquaria – to come to harm." The woman flinched sharply. Sophia took a short breath. "By the grace of Apris, please believe me. We are not here with the intent to hurt anyone."

Cliff gave Sophia an approving smile. Her main job in the missions was to research the terrain. That included local customs. She would be the spokesperson for the group when needed. He could tell by the native woman's expression that her words had struck a cord. The woman had relaxed slightly.

The woman straightened her stance and stepped back. Her eyes shifted suspiciously between them before she turned to leave. Cliff's intentions were to watch her and decide when to make his move. His intentions shattered when she was confronted by another group.

Fayt grabbed Cliff's arm as he hastily put the Decrypter in his pocket. "It's them. It's the Reds."

Cliff tensed. "Come on, we got to stop them before they kill her."

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Mirage entered the village and stopped to take in her surroundings. The village was smaller then the last, but heavily populated. She glanced around desperately searching for a shop or restaurant. Her vision was impaired by the crowd. She gave up her visual search and chose a street at random.

She had only gone half a block when she stopped in front of a church. The structure was beautiful and a calming warmth seemed to radiate from its walls. She stood on the steps leading to the front door; mesmerized. She didn't notice the cloaked figure that had approached her until she was spoken to.

"Oh my, you poor thing," a woman spoke from beneath the hood donned over her head. "You are injured. Please, allow me to help you."

Mirage turned and gave the stranger a questioning look.

The woman took Mirage's left hand and held it up. The stains of dried blood still visible caused Mirage to flinch involuntarily. "Here, you are injured. Please come with me."

Before Mirage could object, the woman had a grip on her hand and was leading her through the streets. Mirage could have easily broken the woman's hold; but decided to see where she was led to. Perhaps she could at least have a chance to clean up a bit.

Mirage barely had time to blink before she was led into a large house in the center of town. As she was pulled through the halls, she noticed that the house was furnished with only the bare minimums. She had no time to get more then a glance at the paintings along the walls before she was drug into a room.

"Please sit. I'll go get the kit and we'll have you back to as good as new soon." She woman smiled under her hood as Mirage sat where indicated.

Mirage waited for the woman to return. She didn't wait long before the door was shut and the woman sat beside her. On the table rested the items the woman had retrieved: a cloth, a bowl of clean water and ointment. Mirage kept her guard up as she watched the woman intently. The woman had removed her cloak; revealing silver hair Mirage knew to be natural and not a sign of age.

Mirage fought the urge to leave the house immediately. She tried to convince herself that she was only on edge because of the red head named Nel in the last town and the group of strangers on the plains. So far this woman had been nice and showed no signs of hostility. Regardless, Mirage had a sinking feeling that she would be on the run once more. And soon.

"Now, please remove your cloak." The woman met Mirage's challenging expression with a warm smile. "How will I treat your wounds if it is in the way?"

Her gut continuously issued a warning as Mirage removed the cloak and rested it in her lap. Without a single word, Mirage extended her left hand as the woman drained excess water from the cloth. Right now, Mirage focused on getting the blood cleaned from her skin. The sight had already invited unwelcome attention and Mirage didn't want to attract anymore.

"That's better," the woman said in a soothing voice. As she gently rubbed the wet cloth over her arm, Mirage did feel better. "You are quiet. Can you speak?"

"Yes," Mirage replied simply.

The woman chuckled. "I'm Clair. Who might you be?"

Mirage arched an eyebrow at Clair as the woman began to clean the area Nel had cut earlier. Mirage paused for a moment and studied the skin. The skin was unbroken and showed no hint of her earlier encounter. She might not have her memories, but she was sure even after using the berries that the skin should still appear bruised.

She quickly shifted her attention so not to draw suspicion from Clair. "My name's… Mirage." She hadn't meant to pause; but she had nearly tripped on her words. She was going to give Clair another name. For reasons she couldn't discern, she had almost called herself by a title and not a name.

"_That was odd. I wonder where that came from."_

Clair inspected the skin and signed. "There's no injury. Tell me, where did all the blood come from?"

Mirage told her the first thing that came to mind. "I encountered a monster along the way."

"Oh," Clair blinked and stood. "Then just let me put these away and I'll find you something to eat. You must be hungry."

Mirage smiled. "Yes, please."

As Clair left the room, Mirage caught herself listening intensely to her footsteps. She found it easy to determine that Clair had only traveled half the halls length before stopping. Mirage could piece the whole scene from the sounds. Clair sat the items on a table in the hall. She had opened the table's drawer and removed something.

Mirage twitched and threw her cloak behind her and beside the door. She could barely keep track of her thoughts as she heard Clair approach the room – only her footsteps had softened as if she were trying to mask them.

Mirage sat statue still with her back to the door. Her hands were on the table in front of her and her feet were planted firmly on the floor. When Clair crossed the threshold, Mirage tensed in a way not to alert the silver haired woman.

Clair stepped closer. Each step sent Mirage's heart into a frenzy. Her fingers pressed impatiently into the wood. When Clair was close enough, Mirage used both her hands and feet to throw the chair out from under her. The chair rocketed back and into Clair.

Mirage jumped over the fallen woman and paused briefly to look at her. Clair was quickly recovering from the blow and pushing the chair off of her. In both hands were daggers similar to those Nel had used.

"_This just isn't my day,"_ Mirage thought as she grabbed her cloak and raced down the hall. After her encounter on the plains, she was fairly sure she could take Clair down; but she didn't want to kill another person. A monster was different but the thought of snapping another human's neck sickened her.

As she reached the door, she could hear Clair shouting behind her. Clair was in pursuit and Mirage could only hope she could get away without having to engage in another fight.

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Peppita scanned the hall before venturing out of the room she had been given. That man Lancar really thought that she would go to bed and stay there? She mused to herself how easily it had been to convince him she was so sleepy and her eyes wouldn't stay open.

She darted down the hall, not quite sure what she was searching for. She would like to find Fayt or Sophia, but she knew they were off right now on a mission of some kind. Careful to be quiet, she ducked when she encountered any of the small crew. It was easy enough to do, since there were not a lot of people on board.

As she stalked the halls, she noticed a door which was still opened by a hair. Curious by nature, the young girl crept to the door. Using her uncanny deftness, she pushed the door open just enough to peek inside. Sitting with his back to her, she noticed Schilling talking on a communicator. He spoke in a low tone to match the volume of the disembodied voice which came across the speakers.

-What is the current situation?-

"They are on the surface now, in the western regions."

-Good, I'll tell Folstar to be on alert. This time we will terminate them before they know what hit them. Good work, Schilling. If all goes well I see great things in your future.-

Schilling shifted slightly with excitement. "And what about the Dragonfly?"

-In time, my man… in time. Right now you are to keep me up to date on the actions of FIRE. If all goes according to plan, Sphere could really use someone like you.-

The communication was terminated and Schilling sat back and chuckled. "Soon, Cliff, soon. I'll dance on your grave."

Peppita ducked away before the man had a chance to catch her listening in. There had been something about Schilling she didn't like. Though she didn't understand the conversation, she knew Cliff was in trouble. She moved quickly to the transporter room. She had to find Cliff and warn him before it was too late.

* * *

Blue's Afterthoughts: Not really much to say right now but to repeat myself at the top. I won't give up on this fic – I'm having so much fun writing it. I have realized something… there are a lot of fics that pair these two Klausians together, but very few have them as the center of the story. 

You don't have to, and I usually don't ask – but you can review and let me know what you think. I know I have one dedicated reader (who I will make a solemn promise that there will be fluff a little later – keep the faith!) but I would like to know if anyone else likes this fic – or if AUs just aren't what people are into. Don't worry CAT, I don't plan on dropping this fic either way. And yes, I'm a total believer in AlNel, but they might not be an item in this fic – depends on what turns I make in the story line. But this is a Clirage anyway.

Just thought I would let you know. And included below is a brief description on the characters in this fic – along with some background info. In later chapters I might include and updated version of this list – but for now I don't want to give too much away.

**BIO-INFO/TERMS**

**Dragonfly** – No information is available at this time…I wouldn't want to ruin it.

**FIRE **– Federation Interdictory Retrieval and Extraction force

**Sphere** – a company headed by Belzeber who's intent is to… You'll find out ;)

**Other Characters**

**Mirage** – After waking briefly in a room of some kind surround by people, she woke on Elicoor with no memory of who she was. Now, she finds herself fighting for her life while trying to remember more then her first name.

**Peppita** – A young girl (14 years old) that stowed away on the Eagle when Cliff had docked at Moon Base for a night. She had instantly taken a liking to the crew and could not bear to be parted from her reluctant new friends. Unknown to the crew, Peppita lost her mother (who was her only parent) less then two months prior to their introduction and she has been living day to day on her own.

**FIRE Force crew **

**Cliff** – Captain of the Eagle and the head of FIRE. He gets his orders directly from Wittcomb. Though a member of the Federation, Cliff works 'under the table' on missions that directly violate Federation law. He is an expert fighter in the area of hand to hand combat.

**Marietta** – The navigator and mechanic serving under Cliff. She is also Wittcomb's sister-in-law.

**Fayt** – The lead engineer aboard the Eagle. He reported to the project after showing exceptional skills in the areas of engineering and combat. He proved that he was capable of keeping the existence of FIRE a secret when he stumbled on his dad's secret work for the Federation. To keep an eye on him, he was placed under Cliff despite his age.

**Maria** – The most skilled fighter of FIRE. She was 'forced' to join Cliff after several run-ins with the Federation for hacking into confidential files on the Federation's mainframe. Her foul attitude is the result of being passed from foster home to foster home. Once she had turned 18 she had run away on her own and fell in with the wrong crowd. Maria herself isn't bad and her time with FIRE is to make use of her skills and hopefully put her on the right track in life.

**Sophia** – She's in charge of medical and communications. She possess the rare gene required to effectively use support (and some offensive) symbology. Her healing skills are a valuable asset, though she processes no fighting skills. In the area of communications, it is her job to understand a specified terrain and all the customs of the natives therein. She is very sociable and makes the perfect spokesperson for Cliff when missions take him to new worlds.

**Lancar** – Cliff's cousin and most trusted crew member. He's in charge of security on the Eagle. Though he's from Earth, he is blood related to Cliff. It all happened when Cliff's aunt fell in love with a man from Earth and moved to start a family with her love.

**Eleanor** – The former captain of FIRE who ended her term after an unfortunate accident she refuses to talk about. Currently she is in charge of transporting members and also serves as an adviser to Cliff and his crew.

**Wittcomb** – One of the leading officials in the Federation and FIRE's only contact. He also attended college with Cliff and the two where (and still are) close friends.

**Schilling** – A crew member of the Eagle. He has been competing with Cliff since the first day of high school. Upon graduation, he followed Cliff to college with the dream of besting him at something. When Cliff was promoted, Schilling managed to get himself a position under Cliff in the hopes of ruining him one day. Schilling puts up a convincing façade and unknown to Cliff is a direct contact to Belzeber.

**Elicoorians**

**Nel** – An Aquarian who was sent to hunt down Mirage and kill her. Nel doesn't like the idea of killing a stranger for no reason, but she was forced to do so when Belzeber threatened to kill her queen if she failed.

**Clair** – Another Aquarian who was sent to kill Mirage should Nel fail. Like Nel, she is only doing as told to protect her queen. She is incidentally Nel's step sister.

**Members of Sphere (A.K.A. the Reds)**

**Belzeber** – Head of affairs of Sphere. Rumor has it that he took over for his good 'friend' who started the organization. Little else is known about him as he likes to remain a mystery even to his employees.

**Folstar Rood** – A rude and heartless man who serves Belzeber with the intent to get revenge on the Federation for terminating his employment there. He is an expert marksman with a gun and has a very foul temper. Before losing his job with the Federation, Folstar was a quiet and withdrawn individual.

**Leiria Zeit** – She is one of Sphere's leading engineers and is skilled in computer science. Her abilities also range to support symbology though she processes little fighting skill.

**Solon Solute** – Only known human able to wield a power known as 'Beast Attack'. He usually prefers to have the monsters fight for him, but when forced he is trained for hand to hand combat.

**Dirna Hamilton** – She has no skills with a gun, but is an expert fighter with a spear. She is known for her aggressiveness. Her secret ambition is to claim Solon as hers, but her temper often gets in her way of approaching him.


	4. Chapter 4

**Disclaimer:** I disclaim to claim a thing for a thing is but a thing and I have not this thing. And kudos to you if you understood any of that. XD

I guess AUs are really only popular if they are high school fics…or involve Alnel. Well, that doesn't matter anyway. There are 19 hits on chapter 3 which means someone out there's reading this. Maybe people might find this a bit confusing – it's supposed to be that way for just a little while longer. Just hang in there, the next chapter will reveal a major detail. One thing that makes it easier is not having to include details on how the characters look and I did the list at the end of the last chapter instead of putting the details in the fic. If this were a novel then I would have had to add all that stuff somewhere along the way…

And personally, I'm reading the dictionary but I can not remember what all the characters look like – especially the Sphere employees. So if anyone catches a mess up on that then just bear with me and consider it an AU description. XD

* * *

Her breath caught in her throat. She swallowed it down and forced herself to stay calm. One glance was all she needed to know that her life was about to come to an abrupt end. Quickly and quietly she prayed her last rights.

But giving up was not in her nature. If she were to die, she wouldn't go without taking at least one of them with her.

Nel stepped back and drew her daggers. The man that led the small group laughed. The very sound of his voice sent chills through her entire body. If she could have it her way, he would be the one to die first.

The eerie silence was broken by the rustle of rapid footsteps behind her. She didn't have to look to know that the four 'pilgrims' had approached her back. She listened to her gut; it had never been wrong before. The four behind her were no threat. This she knew; but what happened next caused her to doubt everyone.

The man she marked for death stepped forward. "Fitter. I should have known a planet as vile as this would draw scum."

The blonde man Nel had run into earlier chuckled sarcastically behind her. "Still can't appreciate nature, huh? Where's the love, Rood?"

Nel heard the exchange curiously. It didn't take intelligence to understand that the two knew each other. The thing on Nel's mind was whether it was in her favor or not. Unsure if she should turn, she stood still and ready to strike. The man called Rood raised his hand. Nel couldn't identify the object in his hand, but it was made of metal. Whatever it was, it was definitely foreign to her. She hesitated. Previous experience had taught her to be cautious of anything these new comers had.

A flash of light erupted from the metal's tip. She only had one second for her pulse to quicken and her brain to register what had happened. Her life was going to end on soil far from her home.

"Oh, Apris!"

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Dragonfly's Fire

Chapter Four

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Clair had to admit that the blonde was fast and crafty. She was truly a force to reckon with and Clair couldn't help but to hold a deep seated respect for anyone who couldn't be taken by surprise. But her respect for Mirage was accompanied by frustration. As long as the woman breathed the life of the queen was in danger. She had no choice. Mirage had to die.

She never slowed, but it was obvious to Clair that the woman she chased was unfamiliar with Arias. Clair pursued her through the streets as Mirage literally ran in circles. Every time Clair got within reach, Mirage would dodge her. It was like the woman had a sixth sense for never once did Mirage turn to check on Clair's position; but somehow she knew where she was and what direction her strike was coming from.

Under different circumstances, Clair would have sought such endurance and skill to be on her side.

To Clair's relief, Mirage stopped running circles and ran out of the southern exit. She was sure the citizens of Arias were relieved as well. They were a peaceful people already stricken with rumors of war on the horizon.

On the flat and empty grounds of the Aire Hills, Clair was able to gain on her target within little time. The woman was mere inches from striking range. Jumping forward, Clair bridged the gap and thrust her blade straight for the back of her neck.

A split second before impact, Mirage leaned forward and stopped. Clair's blade cut the air over the blonde's head. Mirage planted her hands on the dirt and turned her body in a full circle. As soon as Clair's feet hit the ground, Mirage was finishing her sweep. Clair had no time to react before her feet were knocked from under her. Clair hit the ground the same instant Mirage was up on her feet.

"Why are you trying to kill me?" Mirage screamed in fury. She kept her stance solid. Her fist held slightly away from her. She was ready to stop running and fight.

Keeping her eyes locked on her adversary, Clair stood cautiously. She kept her daggers ready. "I have no choice. It's you or the queen."

Mirage shifted. "That's what Nel said. Tell me what I have to do with your queen."

Clair thrust a dagger forward in a warning fashion. Her expression twisted in anger. "Now I will kill you to save my queen and avenge Nel!"

Clair sprang forward. Mirage rolled to her side and struck her wrist with enough force Clair was sure the bone was broken. As the dagger fell from her broken hand, Mirage kept with her roll until she faced Clair's back. With a swift side kick, the air was knocked out of Clair as Mirage's foot came in contact with her side.

Clair fell hard. Holding her hand to her chest, she gasped desperately for air.

"I didn't kill Nel," Mirage said shuffling behind her. "And I have no intentions of killing anyone unless I have no alternative. That includes you."

Clair heard her start to walk away. Finding just enough air she groaned. Mirage turned and looked down at her.

"Then…kill me…now…for I…have no…choice but to…kill you."

Mirage studied the hard violet eyes that glared at her. The eyes held no anger or malice. The emotion apparent on the silver haired woman's face was one of fear and regret. An undefined guilt overcame Mirage and she knelt in front of Clair.

"When I woke I remembered nothing. My name, my life…all of it was taken from me. One thing I know is I'm not one to kill unjustly."

"Unjustly?" Clair's eyes searched her face. "But you have killed before?"

Mirage remained silent for a moment. She pressed her lips firmly together. "Something in me says I have; but I can not recall."

"Whoever it is you angered is determined to have your head. He said for us to kill you or he would kill the queen."

Mirage leaned forward. "Who?"

Clair shook her head still breathing heavily. "We do not know his name."

Mirage rubbed the sweat from her brow. "Perhaps I should pay 'him' a visit. Where can I find him?"

Clair stood, swaying slightly from the pain in her broken wrist. "He is at the castle, home to the Holy Mother. I too do not like the idea of killing 'unjustly'. I will take you there and do what I can to help preserve the safety of my queen."

Clair extended her uninjured hand. After a brief hesitation Mirage took it.

"You will not try to kill me?"

Clair bowed slightly. "My word is my honor."

Mirage let her hand go and bent to help Clair retrieve her daggers. She couldn't help but to hesitate as she gave the woman her weapon. Clair simply nodded in understanding.

"We should have that looked at," Mirage said indicating Clair's broken wrist.

Clair flinched as Mirage's words reminded her of the injury. "No need."

Mirage watched in wonderment as Clair placed her hand on her wrist and chanted under her breath. Mirage couldn't understand the words but noticed the faint blue light as it illuminated around her wrist.

"Healing!"

The light absorbed into the injury. Clair smiled and waved her now uninjured hand to increase the blood flow.

"Looks like I still have a few things to learn," Mirage mused.

Clair nodded her acknowledgment. "Now, I suggest we get Nel first. Her help will be valuable. That and if you didn't kill her then his men will."

Mirage gave her a questioning look.

"If we fail then not only will the queen die, but he said his men would kill us."

"Then I suggest we find Nel as soon as possible."

Clair nodded and started for the direction of Kirlsa.

Mirage walked slightly behind the woman. As much as she wanted to trust her, it was hard. She had already had to fight for her life twice and she was sure that was only the beginning.

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Folstar pulled the trigger of his gun just a second behind the first shot. Light erupted from the barrel aimed at Nel but the laser missed its mark when the first shot clashed with his gun; throwing the laser over Nel's head.

Maria stood back and to Nel's side. She had both guns drawn. "Wanna try again?" she taunted.

Folstar grimaced and steadied himself to shoot again. He scanned his adversaries. A mischievous smile played across his face.

Nel shifted uneasily. The tension between the group in front of her and the group behind her hung heavily in the air.

Sophia shuffled to the rear. Drawing her staff, she set to using her support symbology. She started with casting Angel Feather on Nel.

Cliff stepped to Nel's side. "Alright, buddy. How do you want it? The hard way or the easy way…either is fine by me."

Folstar smirked. "You heard the man," he said over his shoulder. His eyes kept constant contact with Cliff. "Let's get 'em."

Nel side stepped behind Cliff to round on them from the other side. She cleared Cliff and came face to face with Dirna. The woman wielded a spear and a wild smile. Dirna thrust the spear at Nel in one swift motion. Nel managed to block the blow but was knocked down when Dirna continued with her stride – ramming her shoulder into Nel. As Nel fell, she threw her hands back to help absorb the shock. Dirna brought her spear down to slice; her target was the exposed flesh of Nel's leg. Nel watched helplessly as the tip came at her. Her hands were behind her from catching herself and she didn't have enough time to bring a dagger up to block.

The tip of Dirna's spear was caught by Fayt's sword. He grunted as he followed through with his swing and forced the spear back at its owner.

"Move!" Fayt screamed.

Nel was all to glad to do as told. She scooted back and stood; allowing Fayt to battle Dirna. She surveyed the scene, unsure if she should aid the 'pilgrims' or not.

Maria gritted her teeth as she rolled to dodge Folstar's fire. The man was firing at all of them and had moved to stand near Leiria. Leiria had started the fight by mimicking Sophia and had moved to the back to use her symbology.

Folstar was covering both Leiria and Solon; causing Cliff and Maria frustration every time they attempted to fight. Fayt was left to exchange blows with Dirna. Nel stood on the side and watched in a cloud of confusion.

Cliff frowned as he dodged Folstar's fire again. He knew what they were up to and he didn't like the odds. Solon was calling any beast in the area to aid them in the fight. If he wasn't stopped then the fight would take a turn and the favor would be with Folstar.

Both sides became distracted when someone shouted.

"Nel!"

All eyes turned to the silver haired woman who was approaching fast; daggers in hand. Cliff nearly stumbled when he realized who was running at them along with the woman who had shouted. The sight of her nearly caused him to forget about the fight.

Mirage was running fast and straight at them.

Dirna stepped back and sought Folstar. "Sir!"

Cliff didn't register what was happening until it was too late to stop Folstar. Folstar was running straight toward the duo; his guns aimed and he was shooting.

Acting on instinct, Mirage rammed her shoulder straight into Clair; sending the native out of Folstar's range. Clair lost her footing and fell. Mirage continued accelerating at the gunman.

The remainder of Folstar's shots missed their target as Mirage dodged every blast. Unable to believe her agility, Folstar left himself open to her attack. Her first punch made contact with his gut. She followed up with a side punch to his cheek. Before the man could stumble back, Mirage slid her hand down his arm and relieved him of one of his guns.

When Folstar had his balance, Mirage kicked his leg. He fell unwillingly on one knee. Mirage stepped up to him and shoved the barrel of his own gun into his temple. She didn't say a word but her expression told the whole story. She was fed up with it all and ready for an end.

Folstar kept eye contact with the blonde. His expression remained neutral. He was a gambling man and use to putting on a face to fool the eye. But Mirage wasn't fooled. She never broke the contact she had with his eyes while she shot his wrist as he brought his other gun up to shoot her.

She returned the gun to his temple and jabbed it into his skin. "Where can I find your superior?" Her tone was harsh and blunt.

"Heh. You really think I'll tell you? Why is it you hesitate to kill me? What's wrong? You don't remember who you are do you?" His tone hinted to the frustration he felt from his current situation. It was clear he knew more then she did and was using his knowledge to taunt her.

She grunted and shoved the gun at his head with enough force to knock him to the ground. She thought about shooting him, but she didn't. Another realization hit her as she pointed the gun at him – she hated guns.

Clair sprinted to Nel, who was closest to Mirage. "Nel, we have to get out of here. With this much commotion it's a wonder the Storm Brigade hasn't shown up."

"Agreed," Nel responded. She gave Mirage a brief glance. "And her?"

"She will help us free the queen."

Mirage stepped back from Folstar and nodded at Clair. She kept the man in her vision as she scanned the group gathered. Out of all of them, the stares of one man drew her curiosity. His blue eyes told her she should remember something. But what she was to remember remained out of her grasp.

When he shouted her name, she flinched. She was about to respond when the distant shouts interrupted.

"It's them," Clair said almost frantic. "It's the Storm Brigade."

"Come on," Nel shouted. "If we stay here then the queen is as good as dead."

Mirage nodded and followed the two women. She heard her name shouted again but didn't stop. She couldn't stop. Who ever the blonde man was she didn't feel threatened by him. Regardless, she promised to help Clair and that was first on her list.

The three women managed to avoid the soldiers by ducking into a side street. When they had passed, the three ventured from their hiding spot and continued their run. The exit was in sight when another group of soldiers blocked them off.

"Halt!" the man leading the group shouted. He was an elderly gentleman but Mirage could see years of experience in his body language. She knew he might no longer possess the stealth to deflect her if she were to attack; but experience was one of the deadliest things to go up against blindly.

Fighting was ruled out. Her only option was to run. If they weren't the type to listen to reason, she couldn't risk being imprisoned. Then again, she wasn't sure she could reason with anyone in her current state.

That left her with the only one way out. Escape.

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Cliff scanned the streets and quickly motioned his crew to follow suit. He didn't like the idea of leaving Mirage behind, but right now he had no choice. He couldn't continue his search if he had to deal with the local authorities.

Cliff and authorities never mixed. This was a known fact.

Folstar's crew had gathered around him. They were just in hearing range for Cliff to catch a small portion of their conversation as they helped the man up.

"Sir? She's getting away."

"It doesn't matter," Folstar boomed. He grunted heavily as he stood. "When I get my hands on that wench then she'll know what true pain is. Mark my words; I will squash the Dragonfly!"

Cliff froze momentarily before following his three companions through the streets.

"_Dragonfly? What does the Dragonfly have to do with any of this?"_

All he could hear was his own breath as he followed his crew into a nearby building. He hadn't paid attention to his where-a-bouts and was slightly shocked to find they had ducked into what appeared to be a workshop.

Fayt stood wearily by the window. He ducked when a group of soldiers passed by. Maria and Sophia stood in the center of the room and held their breaths. Cliff was still stationed at the door and ready if anyone should enter.

"Clear," Fayt called giving them the signal to relax.

Cliff nodded. "Looks like we better stay put for a while." He pulled his communicator from his belt and set to contacting Wittcomb.

-Wittcomb- he answered in a casual tone.

"Yeah, Fitter here. Look, I've got a question for you."

-Cliff? You sound too serious. What's on your mind?-

Cliff shifted uneasily. "What do you know about the Dragonfly?"

There was a rustle on the line. If was clear to Cliff that Wittcomb had become restless.

"Are you going to answer me?" Cliff asked trying to sound patient.

-First Cliff, understand that what I'm about to reveal to you is strictly confidential. You and anyone listening to this must uphold the highest form of restraint with what I am about to say.-

"Gotcha. Everyone here knows how to keep their mouths shut. That should be evident considering who you're talking too."

-Understood, but this information surpasses the secrecy of FIRE-

"Yeah, yeah," Cliff replied trying to keep his cool. "Just tell me what the Dragonfly has to do with Mirage."

Wittcomb paused for another second. –Okay, but I'll need to start with some background first. So far the whole story behind the Dragonfly isn't accurate. A lot of what you know is true but it's not the whole truth and some of it has been fabricated.-

Cliff held his tongue. It would seem that things were about to get a lot more interesting.

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Mirage scanned the caverns as she chose her path at random. She tried not to think about Clair or Nel. She needed to keep her thoughts clear and focus on escape. She only hoped that they were able to get away.

The three had tried to stay together; but in the end it wasn't possible. Nel had run for the exit, Clair had headed down a side street and Mirage had took off for the caverns. After numerous turns she managed to loose the few soldiers who pursued her.

Feeling safe for the moment she paused to catch her breath. She paced her breaths in an effort to control her heart rate as she examined the gun in her hand. She turned it over a few times and located the safety switch. Once the safety was on, she tucked it into her front pocket.

She didn't want to stay still for too long. She felt like a sitting duck. Pulling the cloak tighter around her, she started to walk. She kept the hood off of her head to allow any sound to reach her with little obstruction.

She had only taken three steps when her head began to pound. The headache came on so suddenly and fiercely she was forced to her knees. Her fingers dug into her hair in a futile attempt to control the pain.

In the end the pain won and she blacked out. Her ears were numb to the approaching sounds of the soldiers. Her senses were unable to detect the presence that loomed over her. She didn't feel anything as someone dragged her into a secret passage. All she knew was darkness and the images that she could only guess to be glimpses of her past.

* * *

Blue's Afterthoughts:

Wow, there's just so much going on right now…I think I might need to take a whole chapter to slow it down a bit and get some explanations out of the way. The feel I'm going for with this is to have the reader in the dark about a lot of things to start with. The reader should relate a lot with Mirage and feel confusion like she does, but on an ironic scale since the reader knows more then she does.

There was one more piece I wanted to add to this chapter, but after finishing I noticed that it would do really good for the mini-section at the start of the next chapter. Yeah, I'm trying a new format here…mini-section – title and chapter – fic.

And I have the whole dictionary at my disposal… and there will be more familiar faces to show up. Who…well some you can guess and others you might guess but you might never imagine the roll they will play. No, I don't have the whole story outlined – just sections that I want to put in. I basically do an outline for a chapter right when I finish the previous chapter. My fics seem to take their own turns and I have to be flexible.


	5. Chapter 5

**Disclaimer:** It's not what you think…I SWEAR!

OMG! I KILLED CAT! –raises mouse pad and cast Restoration- There, now you can live and read chapter five! XD

And I forgot to add this in the last chapter, BlueTrillium picked up on the small joke Fayt made in chapter 3. Yep, I was referring to the game. And yeah, Albel using the word girly is a bit far fetched and I read over that several times before posting and decided to keep it…for some reason my gut said to leave it (I don't know, maybe it was something I ate XD)

I know this is a short chapter but the muse hit me – rather hard…I'm bruised…need ice…okay, I'm just getting silly now.

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Peppita stood in the center of town and was only slightly shocked at her new surroundings. Despite her demeanor during the meeting, she had been paying extra attention to all the details. She had examined the map and was sure she was in the trading town of Peterny. Her only problem now was finding Cliff. 

First thing she would do was con an innocent victim into helping her. She scanned the crowd and immediately spotted the perfect target. A few feet around the main square was an older man. He was crouched in the middle of a group of children. Clearly he was telling them a story and he was smiling the whole time.

She reached the edge of the circle that had gathered around him just as he finished his story.

"And that's the story of why I swam back all the way from the remote island up north."

The dozen children started to clap and cheer. The old man's smile widened in obvious pride. Slowly the children dispersed one after another until Peppita was the only one left.

He stood and gave her a warm smile. "I haven't seen you around here before. Are you new here of just passing through?"

Using her skills as an upcoming actress, Peppita wielded her eyes to water. "I'm lost," she replied meekly in a shaky voice.

He rested his hand on her shoulder and knelt down. "Oh, come, come. No need to cry. Tell Grandpa Adray all about it."

She sniffed convincingly and wiped her clean nose. "I can't find my daddy."

"What does your daddy look like?"

Peppita smiled with masked pride. "He's tall and strong!"

Adray chuckled. "There's a start. Now, tell me more. What color is his hair and eyes?"

Peppita ran through her memories while nibbling innocently on her finger to buy time. "He's got blond hair and…" Nibble, nibble. "Blue eyes."

She prayed she had it right. She had been paying more attention to Fayt then Cliff. She should have told him she lost her brother instead of father. Only problem was she wasn't sure Fayt's description would pass for a relative. They looked nothing alike. At least Cliff had light colored hair.

"Alright then," he said standing up. "Let's go look for him."

He took her hand and led her through the town just like a grandfather would. Peppita almost hated using him. He was so nice…just like a real grandfather. She never knew her grandfather. For once she felt she had found her true grandfather and it was nice, even if it was only pretend.

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Dragonfly's Fire

Chapter Five

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"_Do you know what you are getting yourself into?"_

"_Yes," Mirage answered. The weight of an unseen burden rested on her shoulders._

_She opened her eyes. Sitting straight in the chair, she looked hard at the empty desk in front of her. The whole room was clouded confirming her suspicions of being in a dream. A dream of her past._

_The empty chair behind the desk swayed. "We usually frown on vigilantes such as you. Your previous actions have caused a lot of tension through the whole organization."_

"_I know." She didn't shift or shake. She held her ground._

_Items on the desk moved. Her memories would not allow her to see a face. She was denied the knowledge of who was in her past. All she was to remember was an exchange she had made. Though she knew how to respond she did not understand what she responded to._

"_Still, a small group of us found your talents have advantages. I won't beat around the bush. By agreeing to work with us you could face severe charges should you be caught."_

_She smirked. "And if I refuse I go to jail."_

_She knew the unseen man had nodded. Her smirk widened. No matter what, she would not show any fear. He could not intimidate her despite his position. "Then why would I go to jail and risk causing my father disgrace?" She leaned forward. "Just remember one thing."_

"_And that is?"_

"_I won't do anything that is not justified."_

_The chair squeaked as 'he' leaned back. "I wouldn't have it any other way."_

The room became black and she felt herself draw out of the realm of sleep. For a few moments she kept her eyes shut and her breathing steady. Her ears perked at any small sound. From what she could assess, she was lying on the hard ground, a make shift pillow under her head and she wasn't alone.

Faking sleep, she would wait a while and try to answer one question: Was she in any immediate danger?

After a few sounds echoed around her, her 'companion' sat beside her. She waited but nothing happened. Deciding that there was no use in stalling any longer, she opened her eyes slowly.

Sitting beside her was a boy with… _"He's got ears and a tail?"_

One thing she was relieved at was the fact it wasn't a soldier she had woken to. It was just a boy eating bread and playing with his tail in a very bored fashion.

Mirage sat up slowly. She was still in the caverns but no longer in one of the passages. Somehow the boy had dragged her to a room of sorts.

"Hey pretty lady!"

Mirage focused her attention on the cheerful boy.

"Ya sure did sleep for a while. Feelin' okay?"

Mirage couldn't help but to smile back. It was cute the way his ears twitched when he talked. "I'm fine. What happened?"

He shifted his seating position until he was right in front of her. Breaking off the tip of his bread he offered it to her. She accepted it gratefully, remembering she had yet to eat a decent meal since she woke in the woods.

"Well, I was exploring these caves when I heard shouting. When I came out of this room I saw ya hunched over. Looked like ya were in a great deal of pain. Then ya passed out. I could still hear shouting and I figured ya were in trouble. So, I did what any man would do and saved ya. A man always saves a damsel in distress!" He smiled and beamed with pride.

"Then I owe you my thanks."

He jumped up at her words and gave her an elaborate bow. "Roger S. Huxley at your service."

"I'm Mirage." She said her name for the first time without hesitation. Something about this boy put her at ease though he was clearly a very hyper boy.

"Well then, Lady Mirage…"

She giggled. "Just Mirage is fine."

He blinked a bit confused before resuming his smile. "Mirage, where are ya headed?"

"The castle to the east." She scanned his face hoping her answer was good enough. Clair had told her the queen was being held at the castle, but she never gave a name for the castle.

Roger hummed thoughtfully. "Ya must be headed to Aquaria. It's the only place east of here with a castle…well, the closest anyway. I'm passing by there on my way home. I know! I'll escort ya and protect ya from danger!"

His enthusiasm made Mirage feel better. For once she was able to meet someone who wasn't trying to kill her. With that thought she realized that it wasn't safe for the boy to escort her anywhere. If someone was determined to have her dead, she didn't doubt they would kill anyone who got in the way.

She examined him closely. He had already done her a great service by hiding her from the soldiers when she blacked out. She couldn't tell him no but she wouldn't allow him to die either. She doubted he would accept no for an answer anyway. For the time being she would go along with it. Once she knew what direction to travel then she would have to lose him.

She smiled slackly. "When do we leave?"

"As soon as ya give the word." He jumped up and gathered the few belongings he had scattered around. Mirage watched and noticed that he had emptied his bag to make her pillow. Now that she no longer held the bag down, he was able to quickly scoop his things together.

He fixed the bag over his shoulder so it didn't block access to the axe he carried on his back.

Mirage stood and dusted herself off. She still couldn't remember her home, where she was from, but she knew enough to understand this planet was not as advanced as she was used to.

"_This planet? I'm not from this planet…I'm from somewhere else. Somewhere further then a distant country."_

For the first time she realized just how far from home she was. The realization caused her more apprehension. If she was from another planet then how did she get so far from home? And why did it feel so familiar to be on this planet particularly?

For every question she answered, more questions surfaced.

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Belzeber examined the screen in front of him. His stare darted from one ice cold blue eye to the other. He was calm like always. The man that looked at him from behind the pixels held no threat to him. Not since that problem had been dealt with.

"You understand your orders?" Belzeber kept his tone even; only varying it slightly to indicate his question.

-Yes.- the man replied in a monotone.

A smile most evil crept on Belzeber's face. Control was his and he felt empowered. He was drunk on the power he had so precisely created. He leaned forward slightly. "Good. I'll leave it to you then."

The man didn't smile back. He showed almost no emotion. Belzeber closed the communication and watched at the screen disappeared. Once every particle of light had dulled out he turned over his shoulder and studied his captive. For such a primitive planet there were a few perks. His captive was not one to burden the eyes.

"And how are you fairing, Your Highness?"

She replied by directing her gaze away from him.

"You should be pleased I have not killed you yet. Both your subordinates failed you. Neither was able to perform the one simple task I asked of them."

Once again his words were met with silence. She was just like a doll. She was beautiful and poised. Yes, for now she was his doll – his trinket to appreciate with his eyes. Too bad he would not take her with him when he left. Too bad she would no longer be the perfect doll she was now when he was done.

Yes, this was all too bad for her. He smiled; showing a glimpse of his teeth. He truly loved his job sometimes.

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Cliff sat patently at the table they had found in the corner. He looked in turn at his crew before locking in on the communicator that sat in the middle of the table.

"Alright, we're ready. But let me remind you the longer we stall the harder it'll be. They know we're here."

-Then I'll give you the quick version. First, tell me what you know about the Dragonfly.-

Cliff squinted at the communicator. "This isn't about what I know…"

-I understand that. Just tell me what you know.-

Cliff sighed. "The Dragonfly is a freelance assassin wanted by nearly fifty governments and he's number one on the Federation Felons List."

-As I thought. You know only half of it. The Dragonfly is wanted by fifty-two governments. We put the Dragonfly at the top of our list as a cover up. In actuality the Dragonfly works for us much like you do. The identity of the Dragonfly has also been covered by us. Once again our actions are not common knowledge among the Federation as a whole.-

"He's a Federation official like us?" Cliff was surprised at his own shock. FIRE worked under cover for the Federation; it shouldn't be new information to learn of other groups.

-Yes. We hired the Dragonfly for the same purpose we assembled FIRE. We send FIRE in on jobs that a group can handle. The Dragonfly is sent to perform more precise jobs.-

Cliff shook his head but remained silent. He looked up to see that the three others surrounding the table were also trying to comprehend this new information.

FIRE stood for Federation Interdictory Retrieval and Extraction force. The main purpose of FIRE was to go into a situation and apprehend anyone found breaking Federation law. Occasionally they would be sent to retrieve someone or something. The situations varied from case to case but they all had one factor in common – the actions needed for a particular outcome went against Federation law.

For the most part, the Federation was a democracy based body that had gained control of nearly the whole galaxy. Representatives from every active planet had roles in the various departments. Each department of the Federation had a specific job. FIRE was a hidden agency under the Judicial Department. In most cases FIRE was sent to apprehend anyone who broke Federation code and who was deemed 'untouchable'. Cliff never cared much about bureaucracy. All he knew was the crooks he was sent after where protected by a bunch of red tape. Though they were untouchable, they were still criminals.

"So, you send the Dragonfly in when you need a hit job?"

Wittcomb cleared his throat. –On most occasions.-

Cliff knotted his hands on the table and leaned forward. "Where we go in and take these scum into custody, the Dragonfly is sent to take out the source all together."

-We only send the Dragonfly in when absolutely necessary. Most jobs were completed with out a single fatality.-

"Point: We are on the same side as the Dragonfly. That's understood. What I don't get is what he has to do with this case."

-The last mission we used the Dragonfly on was to eliminate Belzeber. That was over two weeks ago. Then we lost contact.-

Cliff brushed his hair from his face. "It would seem the Reds know something about him. Folstar mentioned the Dragonfly after our last run-in."

-…still alive. Good, that is good to hear.-

Cliff shifted uneasily. "Alright, we're all on board. Somehow the Dragonfly is involved with all of this. Now, back to my question. What does this have to do with Mirage?"

Cliff could hear the clicking sound that came from Wittcomb's end. He knew his friend well enough to know the man was nervous about the information he was about to divulge. In most cases, he acted this way when he had bad news for Cliff. Cliff tried not to let it unsettle him too bad, but something in his gut told him to be prepared. If he thought things were interesting now he had been wrong.

Sometimes a bad situation had to get worse before it could get better.

-Mirage is the Dragonfly.-

Cliff felt his whole world being turned up-side-down. He wasn't a he. He was a she and she was the Dragonfly.

Bad to worse and worse to worst.

* * *

Blue's Afterthoughts:

That last line is dedicated to BlueTrillium who has pointed out the mistake I've been too busy to correct. I just had to throw that in. XD

Yes, there're some explanations – but I opened more questions up huh? My list of questions (read only if you want, they may take some of the fun out of it, or add to it – that depends on you :D)

- Who was Mirage talking to in her flashback and did he call her a vigilante?

- Who was Belzeber talking to and what is the connection with unsaid person and Belzeber? What's this about … no threat to him. Not since that problem had been dealt with…?

- What is Belzeber really up to? There's no real explanation yet on what exactly Cliff's mission is…

- Where the heck did Clair and Nel go? Okay, that's not a really important, dealing with the main issues, question but it's still a question.

- And a final fact (not question). So far I've hit on every playable character. The only one that seems neglected is Albel. Oh, don't cry. This isn't really about him and he get's lots of attention anyway. Honestly, I'm not sure what his role (if there is one) will be right now.

Oh, and may the grace of Apris be with you all!

I just wanted to say that once…just once XD


	6. Chapter 6

**Disclaimer:** I want you all to go outside tonight and look at the moon. Look at it really good and give it a name. After you name it answer me this: now that the moon has a name does that mean you own it? The same holds true for me and Star Ocean…only we'll keep the names to ourselves XD

Alrighty people! I know I said in the last chapter notes that I didn't know what to do with Albel…well it would seem that he shows up in this chapter. But let me give you a small warning – I have altered his personality ever so slightly. I think it's altered because we all know what kind of temper he has, but there were times during the game he was too cocky to give in to the temper so I basically played on that. So here he doesn't have the temper he's famous for. It fits better and besides…this is an AU.

* * *

Lancar paced in front of the console. "Computer, scan the Eagle one last time."

Eleanor sighed heavily. "I told you she's not here," she reprimanded for the second time.

-Scan complete. Results are negative.-

Lancar growled. "She's just a kid. There's no way she could have gotten off the Eagle."

"And yet," Eleanor interjected, "she managed to stowaway without alerting this ship's security."

Lancar continued his pace. When he stopped, he grunted and ran his fingers through his short hair. Not worrying if he made a mess of it, he grabbed a handful of hair and pulled it before dropping his hand back to his side. "Computer, where was the destination of the last transport?"

Eleanor gave him a stern look. "You don't think I already checked that?"

Lancar put both hands on his hips. "It doesn't hurt to be thorough."

-Back log checked. Last transport destination is unknown.-

Lancar placed his balled fists on the table's edge. "How can a kid do what she did? First she sneaks off and then transports down to the planet without leaving any record to where she went."

Eleanor moved to the console and entered a few commands. When she was done she pointed to the display screen. "She didn't know what she was doing. See, there are several errors in her command sequence. The child was in a rush and unknowingly encrypted her destination point." After she had pointed out the errors, she entered more commands. "All I can do is give you the general area she might have gone."

"It'll have to do. Eleanor, can you try and establish a com-link with Cliff? I tried earlier but all I got was a busy signal. One day the Federation will have to upgrade our communicators."

Eleanor crossed her arms. "And let me guess – you're going after the girl."

"What choice do I have?"

"If you had done your job and kept an eye on the brat like you were supposed to then you wouldn't be in this mess," a male voice said from the door.

Lancar looked up and scowled. "Back off Schilling!"

"No."

"No?" Lancar was in no mood for the man's attitude.

"I'm going too. You'll need someone to watch your back."

Lancar paused to think about this turn of events. Schilling was one of the top fighters of FIRE. When he wanted, he also had a certain charm that would aid if they made contact with the natives – when he wanted. Still, there was something about Schilling that always made him uneasy.

"Fine," Lancar replied. "Grab your stuff 'cause I'm ready."

Schilling gave him a cocky grin. "No need," he said patting his belt. "I'm packed and ready to go."

Lancar nodded and turned to Eleanor. "Is it possible to transport us to the center of this 'general area'?"

"Yes."

"Good. Come on, Schilling. It's time to go retrieve our own target."

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Dragonfly's Fire

Chapter Six

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Mirage couldn't help but to let her apprehension rise as they walked the streets of Arias. Thanks to Roger and his nonstop chatting, she had been filled in on a brief history of the village. Since it is the closest village to the neighboring country of Airyglyph it was currently occupied by the Secret Legion. The Secret Legion is a branch of the Crimson Blades which was lead by Clair Lasbard. The Secret Legion was lead by Nel Zelpher. Mirage was almost certain that Clair Lasbard and Nel Zelpher were the same Clair and Nel she had been separated from earlier.

She had also learned that she had slept for nearly twelve hours. Roger had pulled her into a hiding place he used in the Bequerel Mines to avoid the officials. It would seem that he was trespassing and Mirage could detect that it wasn't the first time he had been where he wasn't supposed to be. What bothered Mirage was that she was vulnerable for all that time. Anything could have happened. The other thing that weighed on her mind was the fact she passed out in the first place.

The first time the headache hit her she was in Kirlsa and was able to find the inn and go to bed. The second time it was much worse and was right after the fight she had with Nel. At that time she believed it was due to the beating she had received but now she thought differently. The third time it happened she blacked out. The first time she slept dream free but the other two times she had flashbacks in her dreams. The whole thing made her edgy. A subtle fear crept on her. People were out to kill her; the last thing she needed was another case of extreme migraines.

Mirage pulled her hood tighter around her head and tucked her hair back. The more she got to know Roger the more she tensed. It was very likely the longer she was around him the more danger he was in. The same held true for Clair and Nel. They were already in danger thanks to her and she didn't want to get anyone killed.

After entering Arias she had been looking for any sign to alert her if either was there. Her visual search had yet to turn up anything. She had almost asked about them at the restaurant they had stopped at. She had stopped herself when a realization hit her. Both women had found her with little trouble. It was as if they both knew exactly where she was.

"_But how? How could they find me so quickly and accurately? Something isn't right." _

They were headed toward the eastern exit when a man bumped rather roughly into them; knocking Mirage back and Roger down.

"Hey! Watch were ya goin' ya big oaf!" The boy stood and glared up at the man twice his size.

"Why you little brat!" the man replied almost shouting.

Mirage had noticed the second man and was glad to see him grab the first man's arm. "Schilling! We are not here to cause a scene."

Mirage almost laughed at the way the man's face went askew. He had acted so bold when he confronted a boy but once the other man spoke up he stood at attention.

Schilling growled. "Sorry," he forced through clenched teeth.

Mirage watched the two men walk away. Once they were out of sight she turned her attention back to Roger. "Are you okay?"

Roger immediately perked up and smiled. "Aw, he's nothing but a big bully. Not worth my time."

Mirage chuckled. That sounded like something she would have said. "Good."

"Yup. Now, we'll go this way," Roger said pointing to the exit, "and we'll be in Peterny with a few hours of light to spare."

"You really know your way around, don't you?"

Roger bowed his chest out. "Sure! I've been traveling this way since I was a kid."

"All by yourself?" Mirage asked adding a hint of surprise in her voice.

"Not at first. The first few trips I took with my crew. But I'm a man now and I can do it on my own."

"A man huh? How old are you?"

"I'll be fifteen next month."

Mirage signed softly as she followed him out of the village gates. _"He's still just a kid. Next town we get to and I'll have to lose him."_

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Peppita swung her feet back and forth in her usual fashion. She usually had a hard time sitting still, but at the moment she was tense. Adray had insisted on getting her lunch before resuming their search. She really liked him and for some reason didn't want to disobey him. It helped her to honestly feel this way; it added more realism to her act.

Fayt and Cliff were in trouble and she was stuck eating lunch. She hadn't even been able to get out of Peterny. It felt like a clock was ticking in her head and time was running out.

She was glad the food was good. Despite her nervousness she was able to complete her meal. She looked up from her plate and grimaced when she noticed he wasn't done. She tried to keep her patience by taking in the scene of the people who passed by the central square.

"Alright, Peppi," Adray said between bites. He used the nickname he had given her. "Do you know where your father was heading?"

"We were headed to Kirlsa," she responded quickly. She had memorized the whole map but was still unsure of the area. As confident she was of being able to find her way, she wasn't sure what she would run into.

Adray took his last bite and wiped his mouth. "Hum, I wouldn't think he would leave without you. It's not in a father's nature to leave their girls behind."

Peppita swallowed back the lump that had formed in her throat. She had never known her father. He had run out on her and her mom when she was a baby. Taking a deep breath, Peppita managed to hold back tears from true loss.

"Do you have kids?"

Adray chuckled warmly. "Two girls," he announced proudly. "They're both grown now."

"Grandkids?"

"Nope. Neither one will slow down enough. With tension high between Aquaria and Airyglyph, they're busy."

"Why are they busy?" she asked in honest curiosity.

"My oldest, Clair, is a Crimson Blade. She's got her hands full directing the Secret Legion which is headed by my youngest, Nel."

"So, they are part of the army."

"Like father like daughters." Adray grinned and gave her a wink. "It wasn't my choice but I retired from the Crimson Blades a year ago. Don't let that fool you. This old man's still got a lot of fight left."

Peppita smiled. She couldn't help but to totally love the man. The longer she was around him the more comfortable she was.

"Well then. Now that we've eaten we're good for some more searching. Are you ready?"

Peppita stood up and exaggerated her nod. "Sure!"

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Once they were out of Arias, Mirage lowered her hood. The terrain they walked was sparsely populated but she wanted to be alerted at the first sign of trouble.

So far the worse of their troubles had been a bunch of overgrown spiders and these odd creatures that appeared to be half human and half snake. Neither posed a threat and any creature that ventured too close meat a swift death.

The gates to Peterny had just come into view when Roger came to an abrupt halt. Mirage followed his gaze to discover two large turtle type creatures blocking the path.

"I think we should go around them," he suggested.

"That might be a good idea," Mirage agreed in a low tone.

Before either of them could take the first step, one of the creatures screamed and fell. Mirage barely caught a glimpse of a shadowed figure before dust rose off the path from the impact. A short time after, the second creature mimicked the first. Through the dust she saw two darkened lumps of the fallen beasts. Standing between them was the figure she had spotted. It made some motion she couldn't interpret before slowly walking toward them.

Whoever it was had just taken down the two large creatures in a mere matter of seconds. Mirage felt her pulse quicken as the figure approached. As the dust started to lift, she could define it was a man. He was tall and walked with an air of extreme confidence. She was sure he had only disposed of the 'turtles' as show.

"Wow! Did ya see that? He just took down two Horned Turtles just like that!" Roger was clearly excited.

"Yeah," Mirage replied not taking her eyes off the figure. He had almost cleared the dust. "But who is he?"

No sooner had she asked the question when the dust died enough for her to recognize him. It was the same man she had seen in Kirlsa during her fight with Nel. He stopped a few feet from them and smirked.

"Whoa! It's Albel!" Roger's voice held a mix of excitement and fear.

"Pathetic," Albel spat. "There are two of you and you still did not have the courage to face a bunch of weak turtles."

Mirage searched his eyes but couldn't catch the smallest hint that he might be out to kill her. She really hated having to suspect everyone. "We simply do not wish to kill if it is not necessary."

"Oh? And you can say this after that performance you put on in the streets of Kirlsa?"

"Performance?"

"Don't play dumb with me, fool. I saw the way you dodged every blast from that contraption and took down a man twice your size. Really, I would have suspected much more from someone like you."

Mirage arched her eyebrows together. "Someone like me? Since when do you know anything about me?"

"I don't," he replied in a cocky tone. "But I would like to see just how fast you are."

Without warning, he drew his katana and charged straight at her.

Striking the thought that she shouldn't suspect everyone off her mental list, Mirage readied herself for another fight.

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"He what?" Cliff asked into the communicator. He had tucked himself between two buildings and the others were standing in front of him to conceal his activities from any onlookers.

-Sorry Cliff, but Lancar and Schilling are down there somewhere looking for the girl.-

"Aw man. Just my luck. Why does it seem that every mission we take involving Belzeber always goes wrong one way or the other?"

-It's the curse of FIRE- Eleanor half joked.

"No, it's the Fitter curse. Darn it! Now I have to find Mirage _and_ Peppita. Not to mention those two. I'm not worried about Lancar, but Schilling is another story."

-Where are you now?-

"The solders were out in Kirlsa and we had to spend the night in a workshop. We just made it to Arias."

-Good. That was where they were headed. You might be able to find them first.-

"I don't know how good it is but I'll take what I can get. Just hold down the fort until we get back."

-Like always- she replied before ending the communication.

"Wow," Maria spoke in a her usual sarcastic tone. "You sure do have the most motley of crews for a 'secret organization'.

"Yeah, yeah. Let's just get going. Fayt, you got any signals from anyone?"

"Sure do. Seems the two unidentifieds are here."

"What about Mirage?"

Fayt arched his eyebrow. They all knew something was going on with the captain but none of them said anything. Every other mission they had taken never once did Cliff refer to the target by their first name. He had always called them 'the target' or their last names but this time was different. This time he talked like he knew her on a personal level.

"She's further to the northeast."

"Then that's our destination." Cliff stepped around his organic barricade and walked toward the east exit. As far as he was concerned, he would leave Peppita to Lancar. So much time had been lost already and according to previous experience, Mirage didn't have much time. She was his first priority.

He had the eastern gate in his sights when the scenery was blocked. One of the unidentifieds blocked the way. It was the woman he had seen with Mirage back in Kirlsa.

"Halt! I want some answers from you." She didn't look very happy.

Cliff stopped with an almost inaudible grunt. "I'm sorry but we're in a bit of a rush."

"That excuse won't buy you any time," a voice called from behind the group.

Cliff angled his sight behind him to discover the red head. This was not what he needed right now. He needed…no he _had_ to get to Mirage soon. He felt his frustration rise, but bit it back.

"I'm sorry miss," Sophia spoke up. She kept her voice soft and courteous. "This is a matter of life or death."

"Yes it is," Nel said approaching the back. "Give us some information and we might let you live."

Cliff immediately put his hand on Maria's shoulder. As he had predicted, she had one hand resting on the butt of her gun and she was ready to draw. He looked her in the eyes. "Let me handle this."

"Are you sure?"

"Yeah, so far they are both alive. We haven't been this lucky in the past so we might as well fill them in."

Maria frowned. "You're the captain."

Cliff stepped back so that he faced the area between the two. "I know that a man approached you and threatened to kill someone dear to you if you did not kill for him. He gave you a description and a location. I also know that he told you that if you fail then he will kill you. That man's name in Belzeber and he's who we are after."

Cliff paused and took a breath. He wasn't the best at giving explanations; that was Sophia's department. He wanted to let them know that he was sharing true information without revealing that he and his crew were not from their world.

"You say you are after him?" Clair asked in a smooth voice.

"Yeah. We are trying to stop him. He's done this before but managed to get away."

Both women had ventured closer to the group. "And why does he want us to kill Mirage?" Nel asked.

Cliff involuntarily winced at the mention of her name. He remembered the last time he had seen her she appeared to be working with the two. She had managed to stay alive and keep her wit long enough to befriend those who were sent to kill her. That was just like the Mirage he had known. It settled him a bit to know that some things didn't change.

Cliff licked his lips. "He was using you to test her survival skills. He wants to use her as a tool for war and needs the reassurance that she won't be killed easily."

A short lived silence fell over the group gathered in the street. People passed by uninterested in the conversation that was exchanged. Cliff watched them walk back and forth in his peripheral vision before noticing that two of the people had stopped. Fearing that they were causing a scene and that it would be a possible danger, he looked up.

Lancar and Schilling looked back. Both had a small hint of amusement spread across their faces. Cliff gave them a nod to indicate that there was no immediate trouble.

"_Two down, two to go. Now all we need is Mirage and Peppita."_

Clair had just turned to inspect what had gotten his attention when she was distracted.

"Lady Clair!" A woman with short dirty blonde hair dodged the citizens as she approached her. Following behind her was another woman with purple hair.

"Tynave? Farleen? What's going on?" Clair said turning her back to Cliff.

"In the Palmira Plains," Tynave said in one breath.

"It's Albel," Farleen took over. "He's out there fighting."

"Fighting who?" Nel asked walking pass the group to join Clair.

For each of them to be so distracted told Cliff two things. First, thankfully neither one saw him or his crew as a danger to them. Second, what ever was going on was important enough to deviate the heat off of him for a short while.

"We don't know who she is," both said almost in unison.

"We've got to check this out. He's too far out of his own land and this is too suspicious."

Nel turned to Clair. "You don't think he was sent out as we were?"

"It's possible but with him one can't be sure," Clair responded. "Come on, let's not waste time."

Cliff watched as the four raced toward the exit. It would seem that something was going on and he could tell that the four were apprehensive about this Albel being in the area. During the brief exchange he had picked up on two details. Who ever this Albel was fighting it was a female and Nel was concerned that Albel might be being used as they were.

"Time to go guys. We're headed that way anyway so we might as well check this out and see if it has anything to do with the mission."

Cliff didn't wait for any response before darting down the street in the direction he had seen the others go.

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She had just enough time to check for a pulse before dodging another swing from his blade. Mirage ran a circle around Albel as she moved away from the unconscious boy. Luckily Albel had not killed Roger but only knocked him out.

She gritted her teeth as he swung over his head. She side stepped and landed a punch into his left shoulder between his armor and gauntlet. He stumbled back as his smirk widened. Every time she had landed a blow he seemed to enjoy it.

"Don't tell me your queen is being threatened too!"

He snorted. "I have no loyalties to the queen."

She jumped back barely avoiding the tip of his sword. He was much faster then Nel or Clair had been.

"Then why are you trying to kill me?"

"Heh. Whether I kill you or not is entirely up to you. I wish only to see your skills first hand."

He charged her again. She dodged as he had predicted. As she stepped out of range for his blade, he swung his claw out and slashed at her. In an instant she felt her right shoulder burn. Blood seeped from her cuts and down the front of her shirt. Earlier in the fight she had disregarded her cloak to allow more mobility. If she had left it on his strike would not have cut into her flesh.

"So you are fighting me merely for your own amusement?"

"Precisely."

He came at her swinging his blade from side to side at an incredible speed. She twisted and ducked at the last second; allowing the cold metal to slice the air over her head. His momentum had set him in motion and he wasn't able to stop until he was one step from her. Before he had the chance to turn, she was on her feet. She charged at him; her shoulder making a hard impact between his shoulder blades. He fell to his knees.

One thing Mirage knew for sure is that she didn't like senseless violence. It was time to put an end to this fight.

Her reactions proved quicker then his own. She slammed her foot down on his hand; causing him to release his katana. He quickly grabbed for her leg but she kicked his claw away with her other foot. She removed her foot from his hand and shoved him to the side with both hands. In one swift motion she scooped up the sword and pointed its tip at him.

He locked his eyes on hers as he slowly stood. She couldn't fully read the expression on his face but she was sure he was scrutinizing her.

"Was that fast enough for you?" she asked waving his katana in slight circles.

His eyes wandered from hers to the sword in her hands. "How are you standing?"

"What do you mean?" she asked in confusion. She didn't understand how he could ask her how she was standing when she had clearly beaten him.

"Do you not know what it is you wield in your hand?"

She gave the sword a glance before responding. "It's your weapon."

"You are intriguing." He took a step closer and allowed the tip of his katana to touch his chest. "You wield the Crimson Scourge and yet are still sane. Now let's see if it has really turned on its master and chosen you."

She had no time to react before he thrust himself forward. Her hand started to burn and her arm moved without her control. She blinked a few times just to notice he was right in front of her. He looked down at her; a mere inches of space separating them.

She looked down. Her eyes widened. She had not moved her arm but somehow the sword was pointed long ways between them and not through his chest.

"So, it has not chosen you but for some reason allows you to wield it." He gently pulled on her fingers. She didn't know why but she was unable to stop him as he recovered the sword from her.

He stepped back and returned the sword to its sheath. "Don't think this is over."

She watched him as he turned his back to her and treaded a short distance. She didn't feel like even starting to try and understand his actions as she walked over to Roger who was starting to stir. She kept glancing his way to be sure he wasn't coming back when she noticed him stop and shake his head.

She tilted her head to look around him. In the distant there was a small group of people running in their direction. Mirage squinted but was unable to see who it was. She noticed how the muscles in Albel's back tensed. It was safe to assume he had an idea of who it might be.

This was something she could use. Roger moaned slightly and was holding his head. Without thinking, she lifted him on her back and ran toward Peterny. She had wanted to lose him but couldn't leave him out in the fields alone. She would find a place for him in town and head out without him.

She ran and didn't look back. The street leading into town lead her to the town's heart. She paused and glanced from side to side. She wasn't sure where to go and didn't want to wander around for too long.

"Um, ya can put me down now."

She lowered the boy off her back and stooped down. "How are you feeling?"

He huffed out his cheeks. "I'm a man, I can take a beating. But that jerk wouldn't have been able to touch me if he hadn't cheated!"

Mirage held her tongue. "Well, we need to find a place to stay for the night and I've never been here before. Can you show me the way?"

Roger perked up almost immediately. "Sure can!" He turned and faced the central square. "Let's see…to the right is the residential area. Straight ahead is the road leading to the Irisa Fields and the castle. We need to go left to the business district. That's where the inn is."

Mirage glanced around at the square and noticed a variety of shops. She pulled some fol from her pocket and handed it to him. "Do you think you can handle the rooms? I would like to look around just a bit." She noticed disappointment in his eyes. Swallowing her guilt she smiled. "It would mean a lot to me if you could."

He reached out and took the fol. "Ya sure? I really shouldn't leave ya alone."

She nodded. "Yeah, I think we're safe for now. I'll just be a minute."

"Okay," he replied reluctantly.

She watched him disappear in the crowd. She took one last glance over her shoulder to be sure she wasn't followed before venturing around the shops. Straight ahead was the way to the castle. Something nagged at her to keep going and not stop. She would go straight to the castle even if she had to walk in the dark alone.

When everyone was out to kill you it was best to be alone. It wasn't that she was too proud to ask for help but she couldn't trust anyone.

She had just rounded the shops when something brushed against her and grabbed her hand. She looked down and was confronted by large green eyes. The owner of the eyes was a young girl.

"There you are!" the girl explained. She winked hard at Mirage. "I'm so glad I found you."

She claimed Mirage's hand with both of hers and pulled her slightly. Mirage allowed the girl to tug on her but didn't move when she noticed an older man standing behind the girl.

"Hey, Peppi. Are you going to introduce me?"

The girl swung her head around. "Um, yeah. This is…my mom and I really need to talk to her if that's okay?"

"Oh," he giggled slightly. He extended his hand to Mirage. "Nice to meet you. I'm Adray by the way. Well, it looks like the search is over, huh Peppi?"

Mirage took his hand. She had no idea what was going on but the girl looked desperate for her to play along. So far the only one she had found she could fully trust was Roger and this girl was around his age.

"I'm Mirage. Thank you so much for finding her." Her words came out uneven.

He gave her an odd smile before patting the girl on the head. "If you ever need me again just let me know."

Mirage watched the man walk away before allowing the girl to pull her to the side of the road. Using the crates scattered along the street's edge, Mirage sat down and waited for the girl to explain herself.

"So you are Mirage! I sure was hoping that was you. Look, you need to help me find Cliff. He's in trouble."

Mirage rested her head in her hand. "Who's Cliff?"

"He's been sent out to find you. He knows what's going on and he's trying to help you."

Mirage scrutinized the girl. Now it would seem that there was another person after her. Popularity didn't set right with her, especially when everyone was out to kill her.

"He's trying to help?"

"Yeah. I don't know much but I know a little. I know you lost your memories and he's trying to keep some guy with a weird name from getting you. Cliff's one of the good guys."

Mirage simply looked at the kid beside her. The terms good and bad were so cut and dry for the young. Things and people were either good or bad. She knew better. Nel and Clair were not bad and yet they had both tried to kill her. Nel and Clair had been good guys who were forced into a bad situation. Deep in her gut she felt that she held a bond with the two women.

Now she had a decision to make. She could leave the girl with Roger and head to the castle, or she could confront this Cliff. Since she had woken up in the middle of nowhere, she had been fighting or running. For the first time she felt she was done running when she had decided to go to the castle and confront the man who had threatened Clair and Nel. Even if she kept with her plan to go to the castle, she would be running again.

She was done with running. It was time to stand or die. At this point she didn't care which it came down to.

"What's your name?"

"Oh, I'm Peppita."

"Alright Peppita, where is Cliff?"

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He kept himself tucked behind a wagon and observed his objective talking to a girl. The girl would be easy to deal with so she was quickly ruled as no threat.

"So," he whispered to himself. "This is the one that master wants dead. Well, I mustn't disappoint. This might actually prove a challenge. Master hasn't called on me for a while now."

He smiled showing very little of his teeth as he watched the blonde. He didn't care if the kill was easy or not, as long as she screamed.

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Blue's Afterthoughts:

Yeah, more action. Sometimes things just come into play in a fic while I'm typing it out. Sometimes these things will play more of a role later and sometimes not. Normally I try to tie everything together so more often then not they do play a role. One of such things is the part with the Crimson Scourge. That just seemed appropriate at the time and I'm not sure if it'll show up later but it will if it adds to the story line.

I had wanted to update Prelude to the Soul first and actually got half way through the next chapter before running into a stump. I have the end of the chapter but there's one piece I need to add – I just have to find it. I try to set a goal of a certain number of pages per chapter (it varies depending on the fic) and I'm not far for that fic. So, I started on this chapter while in that slump and it just rolled!

BIO-INFO/TERMS (See more of this list in chapter 3. I'm not repeating the list, just adding to it.)

**Dragonfly (part 2)** – The name of a skilled assassin working secretly for the Federation. This unknown person lets no one know a true identify, but the Dragonfly is effective and only takes jobs that will benefit others – regardless of the pay. Needless to say that the idea of doing such work was not what this person had wanted to do but was 'forced' to do.

**Other Characters **

**Mirage (part 2)** – After a few days she has made little progress on remembering her past but is able to piece together her personality. She knows she has a dislike for guns and violence but is able to fight with a precise effectiveness that almost scares her. She is unaware at the moment but she is the Dragonfly.

**Elicoorians **

**Roger** – An enthusiastically hyper boy who is only one week from turning 15. He will easily deny any fears he has even when he is scared. Though he loves to talk, most of the information he gives is accurate. He exaggerates only on the topic of himself and his accomplishments.

**Adray** – Father to Clair and Nel. Clair is his daughter by birth. Shortly after her birth his wife died. After a couple of years of raising his daughter on his own he met a widow who also had a daughter one year younger than Clair. They married and raised the girls together. His second wife is still alive and they are still married though he spends most of his time with the children in Peterny. All the children call him Grandpa Adray and he sometimes fears that they will be the closest things he has to grandchildren of his own.


	7. Chapter 7

**Disclaimer: **Blah, blah, no own, blah, cries, blah, blah

Woo-hoo! Another chappie and still no update on my Alnel…but right now this one's more interesting for me. So many twists and turns to unravel. So many questions to introduce – and answer. And no romance so far :( But not to worry, there will be. Honestly I had no idea it would take this long to get this much of the story out, but if I cut it short then things would just be bundled together for no reason.

And, CAT picked up on the subtle hint of Alrage…Yeah. I know but hey, don't blame me. Blame…um…the gremlins in my computer. Yeah, that's it! XD

And I want to thank my reviewers! And those who favorited this…um, I know favorited is not a word but it sounds funny. CAT: Another rabid Mirage fan…-whocoughowesmecoughanundatecough- XD I promise some romance to come (just not sure when but there will be!) BlueTrillium: Typo queen! She's on a mission to vanquish typos from fanfiction! GO BLUE GO! (And thanks again for all the input!) Epiclesis: My partner in crime…um, forget that – really we ARE NOT planning on kidnapping Albel! I swear! ThrogmortenMimic: It's so cool to have a guy into my fic :D. Thanks for the support.

Please note that the above is in no way responding to any reviews in a fic as that is a violation on FF rules and will not be tolerated…-takes a deep breath-…The mentioned names above were randomly selected and no purchase was necessary unless otherwise restricted by law…-puff, wheeze-…The rules there in the rule book did not say that an author could not make reference to another author unless such references were offensive and there for are not allowed…-almost dies of air loss-…I am simply referring to those mentioned about and if any of them were offended then please flame me nicely in the disguise of a nice review XD –passes out from lack of oxygen-

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Cliff arrived at the scene a short moment behind the natives. Clair and Nel had stopped only a few feet from a lone figure. Farleen and Tynave hovered behind. All four were positioned to fight. Knees slightly bent, hands on weapons and all eyes locked on a single man. 

Cliff scrutinized the man; unsure why the others were so apprehensive. He was tall but thin. The muscle he had was tone and well defined but small in quantity. Cliff was sure the man would pose no threats to him.

He briefly left the man and scanned the surrounding area. There was no sign of Mirage, but clearly signs of an encounter. Dirt rested in scattered heaps and small patches of grass were uprooted in areas. There had been a fight, but no bloodshed. At least that's what Cliff though until the man lifted his hand.

The first thing Cliff noticed was that it was a claw and not a hand. Almost an immediate second after his first discovery a second discovery washed violently over him. The tips of Albel's clawed fingers were painted in blood. The blood glistened in the familiar purplish-red that was a Klausian trademark. His stomach churned and a sour taste taunted the back of his throat.

The only thing that halted Cliff's urge to tackle the man was his acknowledgment to the small quantity of blood. She had obviously been scratched and was not wounded badly. A scratch like that should have healed by now.

He gritted his teeth. As happy as he was to know she would have healed; it angered him. He didn't want to be happy about anything Belzeber had done. Even if it meant it might save her life. He knew that all the advantages he had bestowed upon her came with serious side effects.

The longer he stared at the blood on Albel's claw, the more he was ready to kill him.

The claw flinched, sending Cliff's eyes to meet Albel's. The Glyphian smirked as he brought the claw up for inspection. "You know her," he stated flatly.

Cliff felt a small hand tug on his arm but pushed it off. He knew he should pay more heed to Sophia's warning. He knew he should hold back instead of confronting the man. He shook all common sense out of his head as he walked steadily to join Clair and Nel at the front.

Nel shot Cliff a cold stare as she flung her hand out. Her palm smacked his chest with more force then he expected.

"Stand down," she commanded.

Cliff grunted and turned his attention back to Albel. "Where is she?"

"Hmmm…" Albel shifted his weight slightly.

Cliff felt his face turn red. His anger was rising. He took a deep breath to calm himself. "Where is she?" he repeated through clenched teeth.

Albel didn't respond. He turned and took a slow step away. Cliff surveyed the area again and for the first time noticed the entrance to a town in the short distance.

"Albel!" Clair shouted. "What business have you on Aquaria soil?"

He grunted and glared over his shoulder. "My business is my own. I have done no wrong…yet. If you wish we can start the war here and now." His lips curled into a smirk and his voice was smooth.

In a flash Nel had drawn her daggers and Clair had stepped in front of her. The two locked stares for a few breathless seconds before Nel returned her weapons to her back. A look of angered defeat marked her face.

Albel chuckled darkly before resuming his trek to the town.

Cliff took a deep breath. He worked hard on suppressing his own anger. A light brush on his arm snapped him back. Unlike his previous reaction, he allowed Sophia to try and comfort him. He was on a mission and losing his head was not an option.

"Cliff," he heard Fayt say lowly. The boy stood at Sophia's side right behind him. "I think we should head to town."

Cliff cocked his head at the concern in Fayt's voice.

"According to the scans I have, Koas isn't the only one there."

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Dragonfly's Fire

Chapter Seven

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"Alright Peppita, where is Cliff?"

Peppita looked up at the woman and gave her a nervous smile. "I don't know where Cliff is exactly." She paused as she fiddled with her fingers. "All I know is he's in Airyglyph somewhere. Or at least that's where he was."

Mirage listened to the girl stumble over her words as she fingered the rips in her shirt. Her encounter in the fields had resulted in another injury. Surprisingly the area didn't burn as she rubbed her fingers over the smooth skin. She paused briefly before applying pressure. She clenched her teeth in anticipation of a pain that never came. The skin was smooth and pain free. She pried the rip open and inspected the skin. Blood stained her flesh but there was no cut. The skin wasn't even bruised.

"Mirage?" Peppita jumped down from the crate. Stationing herself in front of her, she looked up. "You okay?"

Mirage turned to the concerned girl. "Yeah. Sorry, I got distracted." She patted the torn cloth. She tried to push the thoughts running through her head to the side and focus on Peppita. "Do you have any idea where we could start our search for Cliff?"

"Well, I know he's looking for you. Hey! I got it! If we just sit still he's sure to find us."

Mirage smiled and was in mid nod when she stopped. In a flash her comfort level dropped dramatically. She hadn't been at ease to begin with but a sudden chill washed over her with a force causing her to instantly tense. A charge built in the air.

Acting on instinct, Mirage stood abruptly and grabbed Peppita by her shoulders. Her eyes drifted over the girl's head and along the street. The hairs on the back of her neck stood on end and she felt like a mouse trapped by a hungry cat. Only one problem – she couldn't find the cat.

Her breath caught in her throat as she drew her lips into her mouth to moisten them. She felt the air tickle her arms as she perked her ears. A breeze taunted a strand of her hair. She took a deep breath in an attempt to capture what scent the wind carried. The air smelled sweet but she detected a hint of danger. She couldn't see anything out of the ordinary, but she knew something or someone was there.

She saw the flare of energy with just a split second to react. Testing her reflexes, she flung herself to the side; taking the girl with her. The crates she had been standing in front of exploded violently. Splinters of wood rained on her, lodging in her hair and skin.

She pushed Peppita back and inspected her. So far the girl was untouched. Mirage had been able to take the full impact on her back while shielding Peppita.

Mirage turned sharply. She brought one hand up to her chest as the other hand stayed behind her and on Peppita's arm. With the girl behind her, Mirage readied herself for another attack.

She swung her head frantically in an attempt to locate the source of the attack. Then she found what she was looking for; she found him. On the opposite side of the street stood a man. His face was carved out into the perfect personification of masculinity. He wore simple attire consisting of a black tank top, black slacks, black knee high boots and a black sleeveless trench coat. His arms were not overly large but each muscle was well defined. She made a quick survey of his body. He appeared to be wielding no weapons. She tried to look casual as she studied the contours of his coat. None of the pockets bulged; indicating he had packed lightly – if at all.

She brought her eyes up to lock on his face. Ice cold blue eyes stared blankly at her from behind a thin layer of golden hair. His thin lips were pressed together and his jaw slack. His expression was neutral and gave no hint to any emotion.

He had the face of a god but the expression of a devil.

She trembled slightly. It felt as if every vein running through her body had gone cold. Her blood had turned to ice and frozen. Her breath came out in sharp puffs and her chest ached dully. She was scared. The fear she felt at the sight of him far passed any fear she had felt since waking with no recollection of her life.

She knew she had fought him before and she knew that buried deep in memories sealed from her was the pain of defeat.

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The moment Cliff entered the town a familiarity struck him with full force. A deep rooted warning alarmed in his gut. Even after all the missions he had been on, the feeling always made him uneasy. A fight was about to start. He only had one question: should he go look for it or wait for it to find him?

His answer arrived in the sound of an explosion. Option two – time to find the fight.

"_That's never a good sound,"_ Cliff thought as he raced across the square. He dodged the shops and people who stood frozen at the sound of the explosion Cliff sought.

Trailing fast behind him was Maria, followed closely by Fayt and Sophia. Cliff had lost sight of Lancar and Schilling after leaving Arias but would not allow himself to worry about them. Lancar was more than capable of making a solid decision.

Cliff stumbled to the side when he collided with a native that had inadvertently wandered into his path. The man was slightly larger then Cliff and managed to keep his balance.

Cliff gave the man an apologetic glance. He had meant to acknowledge the man and rush off, but when he tried he stopped momentarily. He knew the man from somewhere. His mind raced frantically through memory after memory, trying to place a name with the face.

The man was important somehow.

Cliff was ready to give up on the 'name game' and continue toward the source of the recent disturbance when he heard Sophia's voice ring loudly.

"Adray Lasbard?"

"_That's it! That's his name."_ Cliff tensed at the name he had held on the tip of his tongue that had refused to reveal itself.

Adray turned a questioning look at her.

Sophia bent slightly, trying to regain her lost breath from running. "Adray, I am…Sophia Esteed; a member of…FIRE."

Adray shifted his attention among the four. His sight honed in on Cliff. "Under new management I see." His voice was rushed and laced with heightened alert.

Cliff shot a look pass Adray and toward his destination. "Yeah. We'll leave the formalities for another time. Right now…"

Adray shifted his face to the direction Cliff was looking. "Talk later," he agreed. "Lead the way, Captain."

For a brief second Cliff had gained a confidence boost. With Adray on his side things should be easier. Seven years ago Adray had become a temporary member of FIRE. Cliff had been unable to review the report from that incident. That file was locked away and inaccessible to everyone but Wittcomb. Six months after that incident Eleanor had stepped down from her position and Cliff stepped up.

Cliff had initially taken the job in hope of learning every detail from the incident Eleanor herself refused to talk about. According to what little knowledge he had been given, Adray had witnessed the whole thing. Only three survived that event shrouded in mystery. Eleanor, Adray and another whose name was not revealed walked away. Everyone else was lost. Dead.

Cliff bit back the flood of questions burning in his throat. He could only hope that Adray would tell him what he wanted to know. When this mission was over he would ask Adray what had happened to his brother.

Cliff grunted and pushed the thoughts of his brother back into the dark crevasses of his mind. Mission first. Personal issues last.

Cliff managed one step before coming face to face with the barrel of a gun.

"Don't rush off so soon," Folstar said with a dark smile in his voice. "The party's just started."

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Mirage stepped back, pushing Peppita back with her. "Peppita, you need to get out of here now!" she all but shouted. Her eyes never left the man who had begun to walk toward them.

"But…"

"NOW!"

Mirage felt the girl's warmth leave her back. She listened behind her, relieved at the sound of the girl fleeing. Behind her she knew that the street would be laced with onlookers. She only hoped they had common sense enough to vacate the area.

"Who are you?" She demanded. She had no idea what to do or say but she had to do something to keep herself steady. She wanted to run. Her pulse called to her to seek survival but her heart was weary with running.

Do or die. Run or fight.

He stopped and smiled. She winced. His smile was deadly. Her fear rose and her throat closed off.

"Heh. Who am I?" he answered in a soothing dark tone. "Pity you can not remember our last encounter. You were still weak then…perhaps the master has fixed that problem?" He grinned and took another step at her. "It would be disappointing if the data had malfunctioned with you as well."

Mirage gritted her teeth and bent her knees. As relaxed as he appeared she was sure he was ready to charge her at any unannounced moment. "Data?"

He chuckled. She hadn't seen him move but with lightning reflexes he was on her; his hand gripping her throat.

She felt his fingers dig into her neck with alarming pressure. Her hands shot up to her aid, prying at his hand. Before she could release his grip he punched her in the gut; knocking the wind from her and dropping her to the ground.

Her whole body jarred as she made impact with the stone floor. She gasped desperately for air. Her chest ached more fiercely and her head began to pound.

"_Not now! Please not now!"_ she prayed. Her headache intensified and she knew she was going to pass out again. She forced her eyes open. Her vision blurred as she stared at the man's legs. He hadn't moved since he dropped her.

Her view doubled. The two sets of legs vibrated before merging back to a single pair. The fuzzy outline cleared and her head stopped its assault instantly. The blood that had chilled in her began to flow rapidly through her. She felt as if new life had been granted to her and she was rejuvenated.

She stood gracefully. He didn't stop her nor did he move as she came face to face with him. He bested her in height by a couple of inches. His lips held a satisfying smirk.

He flinched. The wind that had teased her hair immediately ceased as she responded to him. He grabbed for her again. Her heart stopped pounding in her chest as she spun back and out of his reach. Once she was free from his hold, she pushed herself off the ground and at him. Her pounce landed with her arm tight around his throat as she held his back to her.

Then the wind picked up again and a gust whipped her bangs from her face. Her pulse returned to life and her breath continued as if she had never been holding it.

On a subconscious level she knew what had just happened. Her conscious picked the information from the depths of her mind and brought them to light. The flow of time had been altered. As the world around them had paused, they had continued. Her heart fluttered at the idea of manipulating time. Even more so then before her fear collided with her thoughts. Somehow he had moved quicker than time and somehow she was able to match him.

A moment of confusion on her part was all he needed to bend time again. He appeared to vanish from her grip and reappear behind her in the blink of an eye. His hands shot out at her; his open palm smacking hard into her head.

She fell forward but caught herself. Using her new found ability, she set herself on high speed and darted to the side to miss another attack. He glided gracefully pass her. When he stopped and turned to her he had allowed time to flow for him.

She had not allowed her own time to move. She reached him before his turn was completed. As he faced her she grabbed his head with both hands. Pulling him, she brought his face to meet her knee. Before he had time to react to the blow she jumped back. The restraints she had forced on time pulled violently in her and she reluctantly allowed time to flow.

With her new power she quickly found the catch. She was only allowed a limited time before nature forced its own will. She also found her self stagger. The pressure of holding time too long had weakened her. She now understood why he had not held his grip and had therefore left himself open to an attack.

His nose was bleeding. A thin strand of blood trailed to his lip. He licked it off and smirked. He had taken a blow but was able to fight with full energy. She had allowed herself to become weak by pressing her limits.

She tried to step back but found her legs frozen. Her whole body was working quickly on repairing her but she feared it would not be fast enough. He had the upper hand.

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Adray side stepped in front of Cliff. Throwing his bare chest out, he grinned. "Now, what do we have here?" He pointed to the gun in Folstar's hand.

Folstar growled. "Stupid old man! This will be the death of you if you interfere."

Adray chuckled and cocked his head to the side. He kept the gun in his sights as he spoke to Cliff. "Go now. I'm sure we can hold this crew off. What ever it is you are here for find it."

Cliff grunted in protest. There was no way he would leave his crew in the middle of a fight. "I'm staying."

"Fitter," Maria said as she nudged him with her shoulder. "He's right. Whatever that explosion was it can't be good. Koas is here somewhere so you need to find her. We'll hang here and take these guys out. As you would say: no worries."

His ego was not a problem. For Cliff, he was able to push pride away when needed. It may have not been easy but he could. What held him was his loyalty to his crew. They had stuck with him and he hated the idea of running out on them.

"Yo, Cliff. Do as the little lady says or else you'll have to face me once these goons are disposed of."

Cliff turned to face Lancar. The one person whose judgment he trusted above his own. If there was one thing he could believe in it was Lancar's word. With Lancar and Schilling in the fight the tables had turned. The odds were six against four. The Reds were outnumbered.

Cliff nodded reluctantly. Lancar and Schilling had joined Adray and Maria at the front; providing an effective shield. Cliff was able to dart away from 'the party', as Folstar had called it, with no resistance.

He didn't look back as he raced across the square. A group of natives had gathered at the entrance to a street and Cliff would have bet his last fol their attention was on what he was looking for. He pushed himself through the crowd and stopped at the border.

His heart stopped when his eyes located the event of interest. A short distance from him was Mirage. She was being strangled by someone Cliff had hoped never to see again. Someone Cliff had believed was dead.

Everything seemed to move in slow motion as Cliff watched him punch her in the gut and drop her. He flinched in response when she hit the ground. He wasn't aware that he had bitten his own lip until the faint tickle of blood ran down his chin.

The air seemed to thin out as Cliff watched with frightened anticipation. Mirage seemed to struggle with breath and it shocked him when she stood. One second she looked hurt and the next she appeared to be untouched.

Cliff took a step forward, ready to join the fight but immediately paused. The two who were locked in a death glare vanished in a flash. A second later they both reappeared. Mirage had her arm around her assailant's throat.

Cliff would not have believed it if he hadn't seen it. The man engaged in battle with her was none other then Luther – formally the head of Sphere. Rumor had him dead. According to the public story, Luther had died and Belzeber had resumed control over Sphere. The whole story had reeked of foul play. Those suspicions were now confirmed.

It didn't take a genius to know what had happened. Cliff used his knowledge of Sphere's undercover project, Spiral, to piece together the events that had led to Sphere's transfer of power. It was obvious that Luther had become a product of his own experiments. Someone had wanted Luther off his throne and had found the most effective way of doing just that.

Luther was now a mindless puppet at Belzeber's commands. If Luther was alive then that meant Spiral was completed. Mirage was in some ways under more danger then he had thought, but safe from mental madness.

If he didn't act quickly she would just be another pawn at Belzeber's disposal.

The two blinked from view again. Luther materialized first. An unseen force he knew to be Mirage grabbed Luther's head and jerked him forward. Luther dropped back, keeping his balance as Mirage materialized a short distance from him. He was bleeding but other then that he was ready to fight. Mirage, on the other hand, appeared to be weak.

She couldn't sustain her balance and staggered slightly. Though the two shared an ability, only Luther had been able to master it. Cliff had studied the blueprints of Spiral and knew what abilities it granted. He also knew that such abilities could zap the wielder of all energy if pressed too far. Being inexperienced, Mirage had pressed too far and was feeling the effects.

Luther chuckled deep in his throat as he held his loose fist up. Energy gathered around his hand, encompassing his flesh. He was ready to strike at her with another of his Spiral Skills.

Cliff found his mobility. He might not be able to manipulate time or summon energy as Luther, but he wouldn't just stand by and watch Mirage get hurt.

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It was all she could do to stay on her feet as she watched his hand glow. This was all too familiar. With the exception of bending time, she knew the light he wielded had occurred before. Memories prodded at her mind, seeking escape.

_His hand began to glow. She knew it was dangerous to be caught off guard in the situation that had presented itself to her. She knew she was in danger and should run. She would have run too, if he had not caught her in a dead end. _

_The light flashed and her world spun out of control. The energy he had thrown at her spread like wild fire through her. She felt her insides burn and melt. She collapsed into a heap on the floor. After all this time of stalking the halls of Sphere undetected she had been foolish enough to let her guard down._

_He hadn't appeared to be a threat. Most of the fight so far had been one sided and in her favor. He had been playing her. He wanted her to think he was no match so he could deal the final blow without her anticipation._

"_That's enough!" a voice boomed through the metal room. "I want her alive. Yes, if I can control the Dragonfly then I will be one step closer to my goal."_

"_Yes master," her attacker replied in an eerie monotone._

She snapped back to reality when another gust of wind tickled her neck. Her memories were forcing themselves to the surface and as much as she welcomed them, she had to suppress them. She didn't need the distraction they caused.

The energy he controlled pulsed brighter. She was sure that this time she would not be so lucky as to survive. He was aiming to kill her. As much of a release that would be for her, she still feared death.

The energy flashed. That was it; he had sent his final blow.

A force slammed into her shoulder; its momentum dragging her with it. She watched as the energy blast sailed over her head and over the head of someone else. When she landed she realized that someone had saved her from death. Someone had grabbed her and moved her out of harm's way.

For once someone was helping her and not trying to kill her.

She looked up, searching for her rescuer. She was greeted by a pair of warm blue eyes. The eyes graced the features of a square face. It was a face she had seen recently. She was resting on the ground and in the arms of a man. It was the same man she had seen in Kirlsa. The man who had known her name.

He gave her a wink before tilting his head toward the street. She followed his gaze to the man in black. He was already charging his energy again and ready for another attack.

"Oh no you don't!" someone yelled. Mirage darted her gaze frantically. That was Peppita's voice.

The cry was followed by a rock, the size of a fist, being thrown from the roof of a nearby structure. Peppita let out a victory cry when the rock hit its mark. Luther immediately shot his built energy blast at the girl, angry for the hit to the head.

With no concern for her weakened state, Mirage took the fabrics of time and folded them. She made a futile attempt to reach the girl before the blast. Luther had thrown his attack in haste and his aim was off. While he missed Peppita he did hit the building close to the girl; knocking her off balance. As she tumbled off the roof, Mirage caught her and settled them both on the ground only inches from the debris.

Mirage nearly dropped the girl when time resumed on its own. She fell to her knees and clutched her head as her headache returned. This time the pain did not stop. This time the pain probed deeper and seeped through her whole body.

She let out a muffled scream reluctantly before collapsing.

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His lungs refused to take in air when she vanished from his embrace. His attention had been on Peppita who he mentally cursed for showing up at the most inopportune time. He had just finished standing when they materialized on the other side of Luther.

Cliff's heart stopped when she grabbed her head and fell to the ground. Her scream echoed through every bone in his body as he watched her pass out.

The sudden shift in Luther's stance alerted him back to grim reality. Luther stood between them and he was already making his way toward Mirage.

Peppita jumped in front of Mirage and spread both hands out. A weak growl emanated from her as the girl put her best effort into intimidating the heartless man. Her attempts to protect Mirage were met with a brutal backhand that sent her to the side. The girl cried out in pain as she landed beside a wagon.

Cliff's anger rose. He was preparing himself to pounce the man when another figure entered the fight.

Luther sensed the subtle shift in the atmosphere as well and managed to jump back at the last possible moment; avoiding Albel's blade by a hair. Albel didn't stop his swinging as he drove Luther down the street. When they stopped it was like a showdown. Both never allowing eye contact to be lost.

"Hmm, it would seem she has body guards. How pathetic that she could not fight her own battle."

Albel smirked. "I guard no one. I merely wish to test the skills of a man who would fight a weakened woman and pitiful girl. To do so marks you a coward."

Cliff studied the two only momentarily before taking the opportunity to check on Mirage and Peppita. He was relieved to see Peppita had already regained her footing and was staggering toward Mirage.

Cliff reached Mirage before Peppita and gently rolled her over in his arms. There were no signs of the pain that had taken a hold of her. She appeared to be sleeping. He gathered her into his arms and threw Peppita a glance.

"Hold onto my back," he commanded.

The force in his voice caused Peppita to immediately comply. Cliff stood with Mirage in his arms and Peppita on his back. He chanced a look back. Albel had taken a forceful blow and was prying himself from the wall that had caught him.

Cliff would allow himself to feel no guilt for abandoning Albel. He had hurt Mirage and therefore had earned no remorse from Cliff. With Mirage nestled close, Cliff took off for the exit. The only guilt that nagged him was leaving his crew behind.

* * *

You'll notice I mentioned Cliff's brother in the first chapter oh so subtly. Well, Cliff and Mirage are finally reunited…but now everyone's fighting for their lives. And yeah, I have this way of bringing Luther back time after time...but in this story I don't have to bring him back from the dead. 

And to think that someone like me who has a hard time with fight scenes would put them in almost every fic. Oh and anyone who's played Wild Arms 4 (which I haven't been able to beat yet since the PS2 is shared now – as is the game…) will see the connection between that game and Mirage's new Spiral Skill. Also if you look up Spiral Tower in the dictionary you get this:

A special space where Luther's data is stored. It is ordinarily protected by countless powerful defense programs, which have been arranged in such a way as to guard its precious data against attacks from other cities in 4D space. At present, it is protected by additional programs as well. These additional programs have been set to operate at their fastest possible processing speeds, and as a result, the entire space itself is extremely unstable.

If you notice, the last sentence holds the reason I chose that term from the dictionary. It relates to Mirage in ways you have seen and ways you will see. So, the terms I chose to use are on purpose and not just randomly selected.

More twist to come!


	8. Chapter 8

**Disclaimer: **Lalalala –plugs ears- I can't hear you. Lalalalala

Just a quick reminder. There is a nine year difference in Mirage and Cliff. That really makes flashbacks interesting…

Well, at least an update is an update. Sorry it took soooooooooooo long. I've been drawing a lot and just not writing like I have been. Even so, I haven't given up on this! Though I think this chapter lacks some of my usual pep. My apologies!

* * *

Maria dodged another round of gunfire from Folstar. She mumbled her discontent incoherently under her breath as her return fire missed its mark. The one thing on their side was the empty square. Once the fight had broken out, the streets cleared quickly. 

The tables turned even greater in their favor when the two unidentifieds joined the fight. They brought with them the other two who had followed them from Arias. The odds had jumped to ten on four.

Maria was sure the fight was won. There was nothing the Reds could do to win. Or so she thought until the streets were over run by creatures from the fields.

Her eyes narrowed on Solon who stood statue still. Folstar, Leiria, and Dirna had formed a protective triangle around him.

"We gotta take him out!" Lancer exclaimed angrily at her side.

She nodded and sought out the others. The creatures had them all occupied. The creatures outnumbered them two to one and if Solon wasn't stopped, they would be overwhelmed.

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Dragonfly's Fire

Chapter Eight

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During the fight, Sophia found herself separated from the others. She had made numerous attempts to dodge the beast Solon had called. Before she realized what had happened, she found herself behind the Reds.

During a fight, it was Sophia's job to oversee the health of her teammates. In the swarm of monsters it had become hard to look after nine others. Not that she had been given the chance to heal anyone while being chased.

She was the only member of FIRE with the ability to summon symbology. Before joining FIRE she had abided by federation law and became a practitioner in support symbology only. The fine for learning and practicing offensive symbology was punishable; the sentence was life imprisonment or death.

After joining FIRE, she was allowed to learn the forbidden arts. She had sworn to use them only when deemed necessary to preserve a mission or life. She found herself in such a situation. She was in perfect position to do something about Solon.

In a moment of luck, she found herself free from pursuit and unnoticed. She hesitated. As much as she had been forced to fight while with FIRE, she always hated it. She hated fighting; which was why she was content to help her teammates from the side lines.

Clenching her fist she made her stance sturdy. She couldn't hesitate while the others fought for their lives. If she wanted to help her friends, she had to do something fast.

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Cliff looked at Peppita with as much reassurance as he could muster before turning his attention back to Mirage. Shortly after leaving the town, he had spotted a patch of trees resting at the bottom of a slight incline. It wasn't much, but it was enough to cover them from anyone who passed by on the trail.

The instant Peppita had abandoned his back, he was aware of how much weight he had carried. The same was true with Mirage when he placed her on the soft bed of grass at his feet. Neither was extremely heavy, but any weight can be a burden after time has taken its toll.

"Is she sleeping?" Peppita asked hovering over Mirage. There was a subtle shake in her voice.

Cliff's eyes drifted from Mirages face to her chest; looking for movement. "Yeah, she's just asleep," he replied after a few seconds. He watched her breathe a bit longer to be sure it wasn't his imagination.

He didn't realize how fast his heart had been beating until the echo in his ears slowed. The sound of his heart was replaced with another sound. The sound was one he knew, but for a moment he had trouble placing it. Between leaving his crew in danger and watching Mirage collapse, his mind had become numb.

His eyes searched for the sound. Plucking his brain, he was able to identify the source of the noise just seconds before locating the stream. Water rushed lazily by a short distance from their hiding place.

He turned his attention to the treetops. They were in luck and a small section of the stream should be concealed. A planet like Elicoor was untouched by an industrial age. Judging by the structures and buildings of the towns, such an age hovered in the near future. For the time being, the environment was untouched by pollution and the water would be safe to drink. Or so he hoped. He couldn't be sure that some form of alien anti-body didn't dwell in the water and might be harmful to anyone not from Elicoor.

He reached into the pouch on his belt and pulled out a container three inches in height and 1 inch in diameter. Careful not to lose anything, he popped the top off and poured the contents back into the pouch.

"Peppita?" he asked grabbing her attention. The girl smiled wearily at him. She was covered in dust; bruises marked her right arm and side of her face. No doubt she had acquired them when Luther had slapped her down.

He handed her the cup. "Why don't you go wash up? When you're done bring some water back."

"Sure." She took the cup and made an unsteady step away.

Rummaging through his pouch again, Cliff pulled out his own Decrypter. He always carried his own just incase he was separated from Fayt. Fayt was the expert in his crew when it came to using devices, but Cliff had training and could use the Decrypter even if he wasn't as efficiently as Fayt.

He flipped it open and pressed the button to turn it on. Peppita stopped and eyed the device. "What's that for?"

Cliff punched in a sequence of commands and watched for the small screen to turn green. In the center of the screen was a 'bull's eye'. "I need to find the tracking chip and disable it."

Peppita knelt down beside him. "Tracking chip? You mean they tagged her?"

Cliff's lips pressed into a hard frown. "Yeah and if I can disable it then they won't be able to track her…or us."

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Sophia took a deep breath and summoned her energy. She hadn't paused long before making up her mind. If she was detected before she had the chance to finish, then she would die and endanger the others further.

"THUNDER FLARE!"

The sound of her voice immediately gathered the attention of Solon's protective triangle. As they took a reactive stance, they had been too late. A ball of electric energy surrounded Solon, zapping him away from the living.

Without Solons' guidance, the creatures began to panic and seek shelter. Those wounded went in defensive mode and continued to fight. The sudden loss of order made it easier for everyone to eliminate the monsters quickly.

Sophia hadn't taken any chances. Once the spell was complete, she ducked back to the closest member of FIRE she found. Schilling.

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"_Mirage! Look!"_

_She looked up at a boy no more then fourteen years old. In both hands he gently held a hopper frog. The frog breathed in; his neck forming a bubble before releasing a friendly 'hello'._

"_Mr. Hoppers," Mirage giggled in glee. Even as she reached out to take the animal, she noticed the small stubby fingers on her hands._

_Like her other dreams, all actions were predetermined. She knew she couldn't change the past. What she was remembering, she knew, was a childhood memory. She was five and the boy had somehow acquired care over her while her parents were away._

_He ruffled her hair. "See, I told ya I'd find him." He bent down so to look her eye to eye. His blue eyes had always been kind to her. Even as a child she found comfort in them._

_She gathered the frog from him and pressed herself against him to simulate a hug; using both hands to hold the frog. "Thanks, Cliff."_

_She immediately recognized the name. The name was the same as the one Peppita had told her about. Though she had free will of thought, her actions resumed on their own. She pulled away from him and was met once more by gentle blue eyes._

_Eyes she was sure she had seen recently. But where?_

_Before she could give it much thought the boy stood. "Come on, let's put Mr. Hoppers back in his bowl and get you some lunch. How do peaches sound?"_

"_Yeah!" she exclaimed nodding her head in an exaggerated manner._

_He chuckled some more. "You go put Mr. Hoppers up and be sure the lid's on good and tight this time. I'll get started on lunch. I should really start calling you peaches. That's all you ever eat."_

_She felt her smile widen. "You're silly, Cliff."_

Cliff swept the device around her left ear. Previous experience had proven that to be the popular spot for the transplant. His hands came to a sudden pause when he heard his name.

Peppita was still at the stream. She was too far to have been the one he heard. He knew it wasn't her. The voice had been dry and quiet; and one he would have known anywhere. Mirage was talking in her sleep.

Her face was still. He stared for a while; silently praying for her eyes to open. A brief smile crossed her featured before settling back to its previous neutrality.

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Lancar breathed a deep sigh of relief as the monsters dispersed. His eyes darted around quickly. Once satisfied with seeing everyone alive, he stepped forward. Cliff had always been a born leader. Thanks to his Klausian blood, Cliff could easily assume control over a situation. Relying on his Klausian half, Lancar attempted to do the same.

"Alright Folstar! Give it up now. You're out numbered and it would be just plan stupid to try anything." His voice didn't carry like Cliff's but he used his frustration to penetrate the air with some force.

Folstar gave him a smirk in return. "Numbers don't always determine the winner."

Lancar raised his pistol and aimed straight for Folstar. The man did nothing but maintain his confident smirk.

"If there's one thing I know about FIRE," Schilling said drawing everyone's attention, "is that they watch out for their own."

Lancar hardly believed his own eyes as he watched Schilling wrap his arm around Sophia's throat. Schilling let a harsh groan of satisfaction roll from his lips as he aimed his own gun at her temple.

Sophia yipped in protest as she hung from his arm. She was forced to her tippy toes as she clung to the arm around her throat in a desperate attempt to inhale.

"Schilling!" Maria yelled, not daring to move from her spot.

"What are you doing?" Fayt echoed Maria's frustrated concern.

"What does it look like I'm doing?" Schilling shuffled his way across the barren street and to Folstar's side. "I'm looking out for my loyalties."

Folstar let go of his smirk for a victorious chuckle. "We just need you all to back up real slowly unless you want to see her pretty head blown off."

Lancar gritted his teeth. He knew Folstar wasn't stupid. If any of the Reds tried anything then their escape would result in their defeat. His only option was to use Sophia as leverage to get out of a tight situation. Lancar snarled at Folstar as he extended his arms and motioned for everyone to do as told. He hated being at the mercy of the enemy but what else could he do? He wouldn't do anything to endanger Sophia further.

Not that there was any guarantee that they wouldn't kill her anyway.

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_She pounded fist after fist into the bag. The chains holding the bag squealed in protest. The bag swayed under the external pressure._

"_Whoa there, __Liebchian, any more and you'll kill that bag."_

_Mirage ignored him as she continued her assault. Unlike her last visions, the reason behind her actions was automatically known to her. She was rebelling against a broken heart. Who had broken her heart was held from her knowledge, but the pain was real._

_She only stopped when he grabbed her arm and dragged her away from the bag. "Liebchian…"_

"_NO! You don't understand… I…" Her hard expression broke as tears formed in her eyes. She tied to look into his face and remain emotionless but it wasn't that easy. "Father…" Her voice quivered and trailed off into a sob._

_He pulled her into an embrace and stroked her hair to comfort her. "I know it's not easy Liebchian. He's only doing what any twenty-two year old would do. You're only thirteen Lieb, and not old enough to date. He means you no harm I'm sure."_

_His words did little to comfort her. The fact he was trying meant the world to her but right now not even the world could take away the pain. "He doesn't even think of me as anything but the kid he use to baby-sit does he?"_

"_I'm afraid not. Maybe you should keep to boys your own age…when you get a bit older that is."_

"_But father," she whispered trying to find her voice. "I…"_

The left ear proved to be no good. Cliff pressed his lips together as he swept the Decrypter around to the right ear. He went slowly despite the urgency in his gut to hurry. If he scanned too quickly then he would overlook the chip. He inhaled deeply as he skimmed her earlobe.

The 'bulls eye' lit up in response as the device trailed around the back of her ear. He had finally located the chip and was all set to deactivate it.

"I love him, father."

He stopped dead. His breath ceased in mid exhale and his whole body halted all movement. She had spoken again. The only muscles that were allowed movement were his eyes. He let his gaze wander from the device in his hands to her face.

"Hey, is she crying?"

Cliff shifted and looked up at Peppita. She had just approached them and was looking down at Mirage. She sat down on her knees at the top of Mirage's head.

"Maybe we should wake her up? She might be having a nightmare."

Cliff intercepted her hand as she reached out. "No, let her be. I think she's remembering something. It doesn't appear to be a good memory but it's what she needs."

He waited for Peppita to nod before releasing her hand. Trying to ignore the small tears that streaked Mirage's cheeks, he resumed his work with the Decrypter. He needed to deactivate her signal. After the chip was disarmed he needed plans on what to do next. He couldn't stay for long in the same spot. Sure enough the search for her would start where the signal was lost.

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Sophia did her best to keep from crying. Her heart was pounding furiously and it was hard to breathe. She was pressed close to Schilling as he moved. She watched helplessly as she was steered away from the others.

She held on to Schilling's arm as she was literally drug through the streets. If she had been able to make a sound, she would have called for Lanar to ignore the warning Folstar had given him. She knew she was going to be hurt. She knew they wouldn't let her just go about her way.

She had barely managed to cast a protection symbol on herself by the time they reached the roadway leading north. When they stopped moving, she was finally able to look around without struggling too much for air.

In the roadway was a man. He looked sinister and his hands were dripping with blood. He smirked at them, shaking his blonde hair from his face. At his feet another man laid unconscious.

Folstar stepped ahead of the group and acknowledged the man.

"So, I see Belzeber saw fit to let you out." His tone was un-amused and flat.

"Why waste effort to get the job done?" With that, the blonde man turned and walked away.

Sophia could see Folstar shake in what had to be rage. She had recognized the blonde from previous reports provided to FIRE. She knew that this time was different than the last times. This time, the victim had a chance of making it out of this alive.

Before she could dwell on this new information more, she was pushed to the ground beside the fallen man. He was bleeding profusely. Her first instinct to heal him was overridden by the fear dominating her.

She didn't even have time to turn and look back at Schilling before she saw a flash of light. Pain shot through her back, closing off her breathing passage.

She collapsed in the blood that was lost by the stranger beside her.

* * *

Blue's Afterthoughts: Yup, did it again. I'm using German for authentic Klausian words. Liebchen means sweetheart or love in German – so Liebchian is the Klausian form of the word.

Cliff-hangers abound! I know, I haven't updated in ages and this chapter isn't that long; but I can promise a Cliff/Mirage reunion to come and more flashbacks to explain more. Come to think of it, the last Clirage I wrote I put Sophia in a tight situation. Of course, Albel's hurt too… I guess we'll have to wait and see what goes with that. (But most of you know I'm not the 'cruel type' – I just like seeing how they manage to get out of situations that seem 'hopeless'.)

Once again let me apologize for the lack of quality in this chapter. It's my least fav so far. I'll do my best to make the next one better.


	9. Chapter 9

**Disclaimer: **Hehe! Um…err…I own it. Sure do! Bought it fair n' square. So what if I bought the game used! It's still mine! Of course, I own nothing else Star Ocean related.

Bad me! I haven't updated since July! Wow…that's a long time. I was in a coma! I swear. Some people would disagree, but I do go into a coma for eight hours every day. So what if some people call if work…it's draining my life away!

Well, I don't know if anyone's still interested in this fic, but here's the next installment. Condiments available upon request.

Edited 4/5/07. Thanks BlueTrillium. Maybe since I re-read this with more than a few hours' sleep I caught most of those evil word swaps. Editing the last chapters would take a while since the computer those were saved on crashed…I would have to copy-n-paste the whole thing to edit and will when I can…eventually…someday…

* * *

He had seen the whole thing! Every little bit of it. He hadn't been hiding, for that was something he would never-ever do. He was making mental notes. The group that had entered Peterny not only took out the monsters, but seemed to have won. Well, they would have won until one of their own turned against them.

"Talk about a coward! Taking a girl hostage is low," Roger mumbled to himself as he followed the men who had snatched the girl by the neck.

He knew she had to be saved. Lady Nel and Lady Clair had fought by her side, so she was worth venturing after. The only problem was that he had to keep his distance. He was tough, and a warrior, but even he had sense enough to know he was out numbered.

From the corner of his watch he hardly believed what he saw. The man dropped the girl right beside…

"_Is that Alble!?"_

Then she was shot in the back. As the men raced out of Peterny, Roger raced to the fallen pair. He was stunned to see Albel down and that did worry him; but Albel would have to wait. Roger wasn't one to leave a girl in trouble. He would do what he could for her for that was his sacred oath.

A true warrior helps those in need and never, never-ever shoots someone in the back.

"Cowards!" he hissed as he knelt by the girl's side.

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Dragonfly's Fire

Chapter Nine

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Mirage didn't stir as Cliff deactivated the chip. He couldn't remove it; not without the proper tools and even then he wasn't a surgeon. That was a task for Sophia when time could be bought for the procedure. Despite her age, Sophia was an excellent nurse and had at one point 'cured' every member of FIRE from on thing or the other.

Once he was done, he turned to Peppita who hadn't ventured from his side. "We need to leave here. With the chip deactivated, they will start the search here."

She nodded as he rose. His muscles were wound tight and fatigue wasn't far from them. For now, he could pull the strength he needed to move her. But not far. After the day he had, he was surprised he wasn't feeling the strain. Chalking it up to adrenaline, he wouldn't press his luck further by doubting himself.

Lifting Mirage only caused his arms to protest mildly. He would worry about himself later; after he had Mirage a safe distance from the area and had the chance to contact his team.

It still nagged him to leave them behind; but what was done was done. As he sprinted further away from the city he spotted a thinning in the stream. It was thin enough to cross. Further pass the stream was terrain flush with trees and rocks. Hoping that it would provide enough shelter for Mirage to recover, he set his destination and crossed the stream.

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One long minute felt like and eternity to Sophia as she tried to focus her vision. Tears clouded her eyes. The shot had hurt, but had not killed her. It would have if she hadn't cast protection on herself. She was lucky to be alive but the pain was close to unbearable.

When her vision cleared it was set on the man lying beside her. He was the same one from the fields. The one that had angered Cliff. She knew her wounds were bad and fatal if help didn't arrive. At any time, the others would catch up to her and help; she knew this.

But would they aid this man? She knew they would, but they would tend to her first and at the rate of blood loss, this man would not live to be helped.

With a shaking hand, she reached out to touch his head which was turned away from her. Calling the energy from within, she sent forward a simple healing spell. Her symbology was zapped from her as the faint green light surrounded him; providing him what he needed to live.

She was on the edge of fainting when a voice carried to her ears. It wasn't one she recognized but she knew by the tone that the owner wanted to help.

"Hey, lady! Ya goin' ta be okay?"

She had no control over her limp limbs as her guest rolled her over to her back. Propping her head on his knee, Sophia got a good look at him before her vision blurred. He was young; very young. His big brown eyes looked down on her with concern. Then she felt something being pushed into her mouth.

"Here, eat this. It'll help. Please," the boy urged.

He was so sincere that she did as he asked. Whatever it was he feed her was sweet and within seconds she felt her strength returning. Her dizzy head balanced itself and she found herself sitting without help just in time to greet her comrades.

Lancar was first to make his way to her side. "Sophia? You're okay!"

She tired to speak, but her words jumbled together. Clearing her throat, she found the energy she needed to make coherent sense. "Yes, thanks to this boy."

With Maria's help, Sophia was able to stand. Testing her legs gingerly, she was surprised at how ample they were. Whatever it was he had feed her had almost instant results. She knew that she had to find out what it was. While her medicines were effective, they never worked with the speed of her symbology or the boy's medicine.

For the first time, her angle allowed her a good look at him. Accompanying his small frame were oversized ears, a tail and fur. She bent down slightly, hands on her knees. "Thank you."

He flushed slightly. "Won't nothin'. And, I'm not a boy. I'm Roger S. Huxley."

"Roger!" Nel stated bluntly. "What are you doing here? You are not allowed to enter this city without authorization."

Roger jumped behind Sophia; using her as a shield. "Whoa, hold up. First I was helping Lady… err, Mirage and then I saw that this lady needed help."

"Mirage was here?" Fayt asked stepping around Maria.

"What a minute," Lancar said casting a curious look toward Fayt. "Did you say Mirage?"

Scratching his head with one hand, Fayt addressed the Klausian-Earthling mix. "Oh, yeah, that's the name of the target. Cliff hasn't really been the same with this mission and hasn't mentioned her name. I just found that out yesterday."

It was true and every member of FIRE had noticed how this mission was taking its full toll of stress on their captain. He was acting strange but not to an extent he was incompetent.

Maria cleared her throat; a motion she did to indicate she wished to obtain attention. "It is evident that Cliff knows this Mirage on a personal level. None of us have questioned him. We all know that he will reveal things at his own time, but am I to assume you know her as well?"

Lancar nodded. "Sure do, if it's the same Mirage. I am Cliff's cousin, remember. We grew up on Klaus and all attended a dojo. The owner was a single father; his daughter's name was Mirage. Growing up, she was Cliff's shadow. Being nine years his junior, she was too young to go everywhere Cliff did, but she tried anyway. When we left for college, Cliff often made trips back to the dojo. For a while there, it seemed that a romance had bloomed between them. I never knew exactly what happened. I got the drift that she had broken it off and he never knew why."

Fayt frowned. "Perhaps it had something to do with the Dragonfly…" Noting Lancar's questioning look, Fayt didn't feel it was right to keep information from him. He was their acting captain in Cliff's absence; and he could keep a secret as well as the rest of them. "Mirage is the Dragonfly."

Lancar groaned. "No way! It can't be the same Mirage. She would never do something like that."

"The facts that are public knowledge aren't real," Sophia intervened. "The Dragonfly works for the Federation like we do."

"If Mirage is the Dragonfly and the target then we have to act quickly. If Belzeber succeeds this time then it would be catastrophic."

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_She was dreaming again, only this time the dreams were just that – dreams. No more visions from the past haunted her. They didn't need to. She knew enough that her memories had almost jogged back into place. The only thing she couldn't remember was what had happened to her after her first encounter with Luther back when she was acting as the Dragonfly._

_She winced as she looked at herself in the mirror her subconscious mind had conjured. Her once bright golden hair had taken to a dull finish in light of the planet she had been stranded on. Faint patches of blue surfaced on her skin where she should have been bruised or cut. The patches weren't really visible, but she saw them anyway. Somehow her body had learned to regenerate and heal itself. _

_Then, as she stood still in her land of thoughts, she knew her physical body was moving without the help of her own two feet. She knew she was being carried but who was carrying her was unknown._

_Friend of foe was a thing only her sight could determine for her. She didn't want to wait any longer to find out. If she were being transported by an enemy she would need to act fast._

Slowly she fluttered her eyes open. As they did, the momentum of her carrier drifted to a gentle stop. Looming over her was a man she recognized not only from her recent dreams but from her true memories.

He had stopped and was tilting his head to inspect the area in front of him. For a brief second she waited to speak; cherishing the sight before her. Of all the people to come to her rescue she had to wonder why it was him. She never thought she would see him again; and after the last time they had talked, she wasn't sure she ever _wanted_ to see him again.

Her heart skipped a single beat. She had wanted to see him again. So many nights she had set to playing a hundred scenarios in her head where they would end up face to face. The only problem was that none of them placed her as the damsel in distress. That was the last position she ever wanted to be in.

"It may help if I walk. We wouldn't want your arms cramping." She had managed to keep her tone both steady and soft – a thing she hadn't expected to come so easily.

Then again, things coming easily to her that once wouldn't was a skill she had acquired some time ago when she took up the name Dragonfly.

Cliff blinked several times before he allowed himself to believe she was truly awake. In a stunned state of awareness, he set her feet on the ground. She rested her back on his arm just long enough to test her strength. Once she deemed her legs capable of holding her up, she took a small step away from him.

She turned and used all her mental energy to give him a smile. "So, Fitter, what brings you out to this section of the universe?"

"You…you remember?"

She shook her head slightly. "Not all of it, but I do know who I am now. I was hoping you could fill in the blanks and tell me how I got on this particular planet. And why here, of all places? When I left here months ago I…"

Her eyes flung open wide. She had secrets. Things she couldn't let him know. He had always been there for her and she knew she would easily open her mouth in his presence. That was part of the reason she had ended their relationship years ago.

That and she was ashamed of herself. She didn't wish to burden him with the things she had taken upon herself. For her father or not, her course of actions had been wrong.

Cliff merely glanced down at her. His eyes showed no signs of hurt or resentment. Confusion was present, but not in overwhelming quantities. "Seems we have some catchin' up to do."

"That we do. But first we need a place to do so in. I don't know what I've seemed to have gotten myself into this time, but I know I've been on the run none stop since I woke up in the woods."

Cliff didn't question her, knowing time for that would come soon, as he nodded at her. First, find a place to talk. Then they could worry about what to do next.

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Noise. How he loathed useless, unnecessary noise. To accompany his beaten head and only nudge his headache on, the noise was as annoying if not worse than the smell of his own blood. It was one thing to smell the blood of others; but his own belonged under his skin and not pooled around him.

Albel rocked only slightly as he slid his hand under him. Careful not to slip on the red puddle, he steadied himself until he was perched on his knees. To his heightened dismay, there was a crowd of people around him.

If it wasn't bad enough to see the fools from the fields, the Aquarians more than made up for it. But, he reminded himself, he was on Aquarian soil. You simply couldn't step foot on such grounds unless you were willing to trudge on a few worms along the way.

Before he could make another move a pair of green eyes hovered close, too close, to his face. A cheerful, yet soothing voice jumped from the owner's lips and only tightened his headache through his forehead.

"Oh, you shouldn't stand so fast, sir. You're terribly injured."

He growled, causing the brunette to back away quickly. Clearly these 'newcomers' were nothing more than mere mice. A boy caught the girl and drew her back a few paces.

"Well, well…if it isn't the Nox boy!" Adray exclaimed.

His headache rocketed nearly to the point of a black out. Keeping one eye closed and the other partially shut, Albel reached into his pouch and quickly found the item he desired. Shoving the berries into his mouth, he barely chewed before swallowing.

He had lost too much blood to recover in full. The healing he did receive was enough to tide him over and allow him to stand on his own. Turning sharply, he gave none around him a single glance as he headed for the northern exit.

Someone called after him, but he ignored them. His actions were of his own desire. His desire was of his own agenda. And his agenda was revenge. Forget the wench for now – the blonde maggot would fall by his hands first. He would not allow him to be the final victor in this battle – for the battle was far from over.

The maggot would die. As for the wench…he still had a few things to set straight. As his curiosity was high to learn how she was able to handle his cursed sword, his curiosity was only second to his anger.

First, kill the man. Then he would pursue the wench.

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He tapped his temple, activating the optical implants and bringing them online. The age and origin of the implants was unknown and unimportant. They enhanced his vision beyond the scope of normal parameters. They gave him the advantage in his hunt.

What he lacked in the ability to act freely – always abiding by orders – he made up for in the thrill of his upgrades.

Once a man, his name had been Luther. Now he was more of something like a machine, integrated with a man and still called Luther. His earthly form had sought perfection. He was close to that goal even if perfection was at the cost of his freedom.

His 'master' sent a series of commands along through neurogenic pulses. Though words never traveled in such a matter as to reach his brain without the help of analog means, he understood his directives.

He was to resume his hunt even if the tracking pulse had vanished. His motives had changed from killing her to simply apprehending her. She was to remain intact. Any unfortunate souls that graced her present were to be mercilessly slaughtered.

Orders or not... unable to act on his own or not… this was going to be a tremendous amount of fun. And he was eager to start the hunt.

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Nightfall was still hours away when they reached a huge rock hiding something of particular interest. Mirage immediately recognized it. Her last visit to the planet Elicoor had led her straight to the same spot.

Behind the rock was a flat and smooth slab. Mirage immediately set to move the slab. Despite the fact she could easily move it on her own, she welcomed the help Cliff provided. Every muscle in her body had gone stiff and ached with a dull throb.

Under the slab, as she had left it, was a winding staircase. Without a word between them, the three descended, Mirage taking the rear and replacing the slab.

Much to Cliff and Peppita's surprise, the underground cavern was alive with rocks that elluminated. They found themselves on a platform surrounded by many other platforms below them. The ground was smooth. The empty spaces filled with a fog and prevented them from seeing the bottom. The platform they stood on connected to one below them. That platform connected to another, and so on. The area was a series of platforms, staircases and fog.

"I would feel better if we stayed here," Mirage said indicating the first platform they had landed on. The hatch to the surface was in clear view.

Cliff hummed thoughtfully. "An escape rout?"

"Something like that, yes."

Peppita stayed close to the pair. She tilted her head slightly to look over the nearest edge. Her view was mostly blocked since they were standing in the center.

Mirage sighed. For once, she was at a loss as to how to initiate a conversation. There was so much to say, but no words to say them with. How could she tell him anything without revealing her past? The past that she had tried so hard to keep a buried secret?

He seemed to sense her discomfort. "Perhaps I should start. But first, tell me how much of your memories are still missing."

She raised an eyebrow, frowning furiously to concentrate. She wondered how much she could tell him without disclosing any information. Not only was she under strict orders, she didn't want to tell him. She didn't want to hear herself admit anything out loud.

"Alright, maybe that wasn't a good way to start." Cliff took half a step closer to her. He eyed her as to tell her she didn't need to feel alarmed.

She had spent so much time facing things alone that the proximity of him discomforted her a great deal. In her line of work, it was safer to stay solitary. Adding more to the mix only increased the odds of someone, other than herself, being injured or killed.

"Let me start then," Cliff chimed. "I guess a formal introduction is in order." He almost chuckled. Given the fact he was present at her christening and had watched her grow up, the whole affair of an introduction felt so absurd – yet vital.

"I am Captain Cliff Fitter of the Federation subunit FIRE. Class A. Security level Elusive."

Shock plastered across her face despite herself. He had so openly admitted to something in such a way that only validated his words. She was struck speechless.

Catching the giggle in his throat, Cliff managed to keep his demeanor professional. "FIRE stands for Federation Interdictory Retrieval and Extraction force. Our job is to simply go in where the Federation can't and apprehend the bad guys."

Involuntarily a smile cracked across her lips. "Apprehend the _bad guys_," she half chuckled. "I take it there is no official speech or you are improvising as usual."

Cliff nodded, letting his own smile loose. "You got me. But, besides apprehending the bad guys, we are also called in to retrieve objects or people. In this case, we were sent to retrieve you, Mirage." He paused for a moment, content he had her full attention. "Or should I say, Dragonfly?"

The look of utter surprise was not one seen often on her face and it caused him to lose control. A short laughing fit took over and for a brief moment he had completely shed the burden he had carried since starting this mission.

She hadn't been able to share in his laughter. It was obvious that if her cover was blown then things had been escalated beyond the point of taking anything lightly. "Wittcomb? He told you, didn't he?"

Almost immediately, he was jolted from his light mood. The weight of his mission settled back on him with a vengeance. "Yes. Look, Mirage, I'm not here regarding anything about the Dragonfly. I'm here to get you out of here before Belzeber has the opportunity to proceed with his plans."

Relief flooded her and she nearly lost her balance. A quick change of balance from one foot to the other countered a very ungraceful fall. A flash of memories from a time right before she hit a snag immediately staggered in her mind. Her last mission was to go in and assassinate Belzeber.

She shook her head, finally resting it in her palm. "I failed. I don't remember what happened after I was caught, but I failed my mission."

Diverting her eyes, she glanced up at him. Blue irises met her with no resentment. He showed no signs of judgment as she had expected. Instead, he was the Cliff he had always been – remaining silent and giving her room to formulate her words. He always had the patience she needed. And he was always so easy to talk to. He had a way of understanding, and this time she knew it wasn't any different. In fact, he would understand more now that she knew he was also a Federation secret.

"Where your mission was to simply retrieve me, I was sent to take Belzeber out before he could do any more harm. I wasn't privileged with much information on his actions, but I was allowed to see what he had done to others. I know he performed inhumane experiments and I have seen what had become of his victims. That was enough to justify the Federation's need of my assistance."

Peppita slowly inched closer to Mirage. Tilting her head to one side, she addressed the woman. "Are you saying that you are the Dragonfly?"

For a few minutes Mirage had completely forgotten about the girl. She was so wrapped up in her own relief at the opportunity to speak so openly to Cliff she had tuned everything else around her out. Looking straight into the girl's eyes she nodded silently.

An unexpected response met her as the girl wrapped her arms tightly around Mirage's waist. The grip wasn't tight, but as tight as the girl could give.

"You saved my life!"

Cliff looked awestruck at the girl. His mouth hung slightly ajar. "She what?"

Peppita nodded enthusiastically, keeping Mirage pinned in her sights. "I don't know if you remember, but I was with my mother…we were aboard a transport freighter that was attacked by the Vendeeni. There was a man aboard who had made the Vendeeni mad and they were willing to kill all of us to get him. You showed up and managed to get most of us safely off before the Vendeeni blew the whole thing up. My mother was injured and you even provided what medicine you had and then dropped us off at the first Moonbase we crossed. Mom…she only lived for five months after that. The injuries she had suffered during the attack were severe but the doctors said she wouldn't have lived as long as she did if she hadn't been given that medicine. She was always thankful to you for saving my life and giving her a few extra months to live."

"I…remember that," Mirage responded slowly.

"Wow! I mean, I never would have guessed. You wore such a great disguise I never even got a good look at the color of your eyes."

Mirage looked up from the girl, still wound around her, and addressed Cliff. "How did she get here? I mean, I wouldn't think the Federation would hire this young."

"She was a stowaway. After somehow getting pass our security, she managed to transport herself to the planet's surface." He gave Peppita a chastising expression.

She parted from Mirage. Twisting one foot in a childish manner, she kept her eyes set on his. "I had to! That man, Schilling is a traitor. He's working for that Belzabra…Belzerba…that bad guy!"

"Belzerber?! Schilling and Belzerber… I left my crew up there fighting and he was there."

The distress in Cliff's voice only heighten her anxiety. She may have worked more jobs alone, but her sense of loyalty was dutiful. Those were Cliff's people and they were there because of her. She had to help them. It was the only right thing to do.

For once the Dragonfly would join a team. FIRE needed her. Cliff needed her.

"Then let's go. We have to help them," she demanded and turned to the stairs.

"Mirage? Are you sure you're up to a rescue mission. I was here to rescue you, not have you rescue me."

She turned and gave him a coy smile. "I don't much care for the damsel in distress bit. If anyone needs rescuing I would sooner not be on the receiving end. I'm as good as I can be and we need to act fast."

Cliff nodded, following her up the stairs and to the surface.

Once the slab was in place again, the trio started their trek back toward Peterny. After only a few short steps, their path was blocked. The silhouette was one none of them would miss. Tension wound tight around them and the air became thin.

"I didn't expect you to come to me. A hunt isn't much of a hunt if the prey simply approaches the hunter, now is it?" Luther shifted his weight. "Well then, let us see if the kill will make up for that."

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Blue's Afterthoughts: I finally get an update going, determined to tie some loose ends and still manage to end with a cliff-hanger! I stole some terms from Star Trek for Luther's part. I kinda took the terms and altered them but I figured since there is a Star Trek section on this site then it would be okay to 'borrow' a bit.


	10. Chapter 10

**Disclaimer: **You're looking in the wrong place...it's hiden under the rock in the stream by the brick hut further down the lane of flowers.

All flashbacks are Mirage's and will tell the story of the Dragonfly. I wanted to fill everyone in and I've been elusive enough. Time for some answers…but the true question is are you ready? Well, read on and find out!

Edit 6/19/07 - Thanks again to BlueTrillium for pointing out another error. :)

Thanks to the new set up I can easily edit things up to 30 days! This new feature I simply adore. So, if anyone finds anything wrong let me know so I can correct it.

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_She found him knelt before the altar. A single painting of her late mother graced the center. Candle flame danced about; casting shadows around the dark room. He didn't know she was there._

_She was about to let her presence be known when he spoke. _

"_Since you left us I have never needed you more than now, dear wife. Our daughter is in danger and the dojo in jeopardy. Rokagin's men won't give in easily. I've sent every student away."_

_Her breath hitched in her throat. She quietly slunk into the shadows. He spoke of Rokagin and she could scarcely believe it. Rokagin was the head of an unlawful organization that always eluded the officials. Compared to Earth history, he was the head of the Klausian mafia._

_He didn't speak again. After he motioned through the traditional Klausian prayers for strength and protection, he left. His own thoughts occupied him and she remained unannounced to his perceptions._

_Once he was gone, she moved silently to the altar. The painting of her mother watched over her as she plucked the paper he had left. It was a note in a penmanship she had never seen; but there was no mistaken its origins._

_Her father's words echoed in her mind. He had said she was in trouble and now she knew why._

_Rokagin was seeking someone with advanced fighting skills to aid him. He wanted a hit man of certain qualifications and he had targeted her. According to the letter, her father had denied him and he was not pleased. He threatened the dojo if Mirage wasn't handed over to him._

_She had just turned twenty-three and her life had been going exactly how she had dreamed. Cliff had come around and they were one year into a promising relationship. But now…now things were taking a turn far worse than she could imagine. _

_If Rokagin didn't get what he wanted, which was her, he was willing to kill her father and burn the dojo to the ground. After that, he intended to take her anyway._

_Anger burned deep in an unquenchable thirst. She wasn't going to sit by and watch her father's life destroyed because some jerk who thought he was untouchable decided so. She would see for herself just how untouchable he really was._

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Dragonfly's Fire

Chapter Ten

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Deftly he maneuvered through the overgrown grass. This land, Aquaria, was setting itself against him; heightening his dislike for it. After trudging through the shallow stream, his dislike took a turn into loathing.

Albel wasn't one for nature hikes though he possessed the agility and knowledge to do so. Given the option he would prefer to hold himself up in a tavern night after night. It would eventually take his lean figure and reverse his waist line; but he grew tired of the nonsense.

For now, anyway. He knew that after a day or two he would break from the somber mood and seek out another battle. His recent mind-frame was a result of being beaten by a woman with his own sword and then beaten again by a blonde magician.

He pondered over his adversary as he wandered the land. He had to be a magician to move as fast as he had. That and Albel could sense something amiss in him. He was human and yet not human all the same. Albel had fought enough foes to see beyond the tangible and he didn't like what he saw in the magician.

Being one to seek a battle was one thing. Not that Albel ever attacked innocents, unless provoked. This magician attacked anyone in his way and such acts were not honorable. Albel might not project his true feelings and most would never guess but he had a deep seated moral. In this moral he had bound himself to perform honorable and nobly – even if such acts were in his eyes only.

He was unsure of the woman. She required extended investigation. But the man – the magician - was to be terminated. As long as he breathed nothing was safe. Albel would have to eradicate that problem before it escalated.

Much to his pleasure, finding the magician wasn't a problem. Shortly after crossing the shallow stream he spotted his target. As luck would have it, the magician was distracted by the wench. Albel wasn't one for stabbing someone in the back, but he was smart enough to know that sometimes that was exactly what had to be done.

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_Mirage knew she was in over her head. Her anger had guided her against logic for once. Her family had been threatened and common sense had been discarded. Regardless of all that she had made her way into Rokagin's head quarters._

_She had left home two days ago and had just gotten to the point she aimed for. All her training had been pushed to its limits. Her silent stealth, cunning, ability to hide in shadows and all other techniques she had acquired over her lifetime were in full swing._

_She had always been a fan of ancient Earth history. In the text of her favorite book were pictures of legendary ninjas. Their grace, strength and affection for being anonymous caught her; and she guised herself as the illustrations had shown. If anyone where to see her they wouldn't even know she was female._

_With skills rivaling a feline she crept up behind the un-expecting leader. She loathed violence but kept her mind set. This was necessary. It was him or her father. He didn't stand a chance against those odds._

_But luck wasn't with her that night. No sooner had she slit his throat when the Federation Police stormed through the door. After years it would seem that Rokagin couldn't elude their authority and they had come to arrest him._

_Instead they arrested her and carried his corpse to a lab for examination._

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Lancar lead the others out the Northern exit. After all his training it wasn't hard to pick out two trails to follow. He bent at the fork of footsteps and examined the ground.

"Looks like Luther and…Albel, I think that was his name, headed west. The Reds headed north," he said as he stood.

"Luther would pursue the target," Maria chimed. "The Reds are probably on an intercept course with Belzeber."

"Either path leads to a tough fight."

Lancar nodded at Adray. "We need to split up."

Nel stepped forward. "Count us in. We know this land and it is our sworn duty to protect the queen."

Lancar scanned the group taking in each member's strength and weaknesses. He had limited knowledge of the natives but he had just witnessed them in battle.

"Alright. I'll need Clair, Adray, and Fayt with me. We'll be headed to the castle. Nel, since you know this land I'm putting you in charge. Take the others and find Cliff. Please."

Nel bit back her protest. Her whole body earned to protect the queen but these new comers did need a knowledgeable guide. By helping the others involved she would be striking a blow against Belzeber. She nodded in agreement.

Lancar watched as Sophia, Maria and Roger fell in behind Nel before leading his own group deeper into Aquaria.

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_Only six months had passed after her deal with the Federation. They wouldn't press charges but that was at a price. Mirage would provide secret services and in return keep her 'freedom'. She had trained, knowing what they would want. It wasn't her ideal job but her hands were tied and she was doing _good deeds_ even if the means were unfavorable._

_Her first mission was to take a trip to Elicoor, an underdeveloped planet, to rendezvous with another Federation group. She was to watch them from the shadows and only intervene if things got out of hand._

_A Larkian had picked the undeserving planet for a hideout as he waited for his next move. In his possession were scrolls and ancient documents belonging to Glatious, a planet in the Formalian Galaxy. The Glatians were allies to the Federation and the documents the fugitive possessed were filled with ancient spells. The Federation had tried to bargain with the Glatians to destroy them but they were a part of their culture and the bargain was refused. As a result, Lumas had stolen them and was headed to the black market._

_Her orders were to take Lumas out and try to bring the documents back to head quarters if the other team had failed._

_But things went wrong. Horribly wrong._

_Lumas had studied the scrolls and learned the spells. Acting under the name Dragonfly, Mirage witnessed and participated in the whole thing. Years from then wouldn't stop the nightmares but after thoughts would conclude that there was nothing anyone could have done differently._

_The whole team sent by the Federation was trapped. She had no choice but to blow her cover when she saw none other than Cliff's younger brother. She had often played with him as a child since he was only three years her senior. She had to help Jarvis. She couldn't let the brother of the man she loved die._

_But in the end he did die. In her arms no less. Everyone with the exception of Eleanor and an Elicoorian native had perished in the fight. Jarvis' injuries were too great to heal and in an attempt not to allow him to die alone she broke the number one rule Wittcomb had issued. She revealed her identity to him._

_News of his brother's death wouldn't reach Cliff for a month. She felt guilty for having to hide such a cruel fact but there was relief that she didn't have to deliver the news. Instead, she broke up with Cliff. She finally understood exactly what she had gotten herself into. There was no way to sustain a relationship when the next mission could cause her life. And she couldn't do that to Cliff. She couldn't lie to him anymore. It had to stop._

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Schilling followed Folstar with rejuvenated confidence. Orders had been received to meet with the boss and leave Luther to handle the job. Reaching the castle would be an easy task even if the hike would lead them well into nightfall.

Folstar smirked. There were more to his orders than just to rendezvous with Belzeber. He sent a sturdy glance over at Schilling; despising his smugness. Schilling thought he was safe.

If there was one thing Folstar couldn't stand was an over-swelled ego. Schilling, he knew, intended to out-rank everyone and take the right hand seat to Belzeber. After that, he would set his sights on taking over completely.

Belzeber knew this and had thus far used it to his advantage. But now Schilling had blown his cover and was useless.

Folstar stopped, motioning for the others to do so also. He turned to face Schilling. Giving forth his best smile he effectively lured the man into a false setting.

"Yo! I have to say you really came through back there."

Schilling's face lit up at the sound of praise. "Only doing my duty," he said modestly.

Folstar nodded. And it was then, when Schilling felt comfortable and could see his goals coming through; Folstar shot him dead with one shot.

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_She would spend the next six years alone. Turning in ice, her heart slowly ceased to be more than a tool for pumping blood. Never did she once strike out against an innocent person, but some of the task she had been sent to do left her hands bloodstained._

_Many nights were spent arguing against herself and her morals. Sleep eluded her more than comforted her. When she did sleep it was rare for the night to pass without restlessness. _

_She was tired of it. The secrets, her life…she had never stopped running. She shut out her father, her family and Cliff all to protect them. But it was a the price of nearly losing herself. _

_Who she was…Was she the Dragonfly, or Mirage Koas? Heinous act after heinous act made her doubt everything down to her own humanity. She no longer lived to lived but lived for death._

She hated it. Now, it was time for **that** to stop.

Immediately Mirage posed; ready for battle. Luther, she knew, was in far better health than her and it would take a miracle to take him down.

Miracles sometimes do happen and had there ever been a time for one – this was it. Darting from the shadows of a pending twilight another figure joined in. Stumbling slightly but managing to maintain his stealth, Albel flung himself at Luther. Sword moving at speeds rivaling lightning, the Crimson Scourge was plunged deep into Luther's back.

Only problem was that Luther had sensed the change in the air and had dodged – coming out unharmed. Twisting on thin air, Luther brought his foot high and landed a crippling blow to Albel's head.

The swordsman fell hard, his weapon sliding from his open hand and to Mirage's feet.

She hated guns but a sword was different. His sword was a katana blade and the traditional weapon wielded by the sword-masters at her father's dojo. Considering her position at the dojo, she was a master in nearly all techniques taught. Her only rival on Klaus was her father.

But she wasn't on Klaus. Perhaps this was the miracle she had pleaded for. Plucking the sword up she stepped forward. Holding the hilt with both hands she could feel a mysterious force pulsing through her skin.

The first time she had tried to fight with this sword it hadn't allowed her to so much as nick Albel. She hoped that it would allow her to do far more than scratch Luther. She set her mind and became the Dragonfly in full.

Before it was over someone was going to die. If she had it her way it would be Luther.

* * *

Blue's Afterthoughts: Well, not a long chapter but full of information. I know, Schilling's death was out of the blue but that's just the way it had to be. And, if you are wondering, I sent strong fighters with Lancar for a reason. Quite simple really: Nel, Sophia, Maria and Roger are after Luther whose after Cliff, Mirage and Albel – hence there's your fighting power there. So, both teams are balanced…sorta since Lancar's headed into a battle against many where the others are after only Luther. 


End file.
